tSift  Searon  S>tvxe& 


JESUS   OF  NAZARETH 


LIBRARY  OF  THE  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY 

PRINCETON.  N.  J. 


PRESENTED  BY 


PRIi^'GETOi;   UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 


BX  9821  .P37  1909 

Park,  Charles  Edwards, 

1873- 

1962. 

Jesus  of  Nazareth 

This  Book  is  a  part  of  the  Beacon  Series  of  Manuals, 
prepared  for  grades  I-XII,  inclusive,  of  a  Graded  Course 
of  Sunday-School  Lessons,  an  outline  of  which  follows. 
Each  Manual  is  accompanied  by  a  Teacher's  Helper. 

KINDERGARTEN,  AGES   4,  5* 

Nature  Lessons 

Jesus  in  Story  and  Picture 

GRADE  PRIMARY,  AGES    6-9 

I.    First  Book  of  Religion.  Mrs.  Charles  A.  Lane 

II.   Stories  from  the  Old  Testament 

Mrs.  Henry  C.  Parker 

III.  Stories  from  the  New  Testament 

Oliver  Jay  Fairfield 

IV.  World  Stories.  Joel  H.  Metcalf 

JUNIOR,  AGES    10-13 

V.   The  Bible  and  The  Bible  Country 

Jabez  T.  Sunderland 
VI.    Hebrew  Beginnings 

Old  Testament  Narratives.     Part  I 

Edna  H.  Stebbins 
VII.    Hebrew  History 

Old  Testament  Narratives.     Part  II 

Henry  Hallam  Saunderson 
VIII.   Jesus  of  Nazareth.  Charles  E.  Park 

SENIOR,  AGES    14-17 
IX.    The  Work  of  the  Apostles.    Henry  Hallam  Saunderson 
X.    Movements  and  Men  of  Christian  History 

Charles  T.  Billings 
XI.   Comparative  Studies  in  Religion 

An  Introduction  to  Unitarianism.    Henry  T.  Secrist 
XII.   The  Bible  as  Literature.  John  M.  Wilson 

ADVANCED,  AGES    18-* 

Citizenship  and  Social  Service 
Studies  in  Ethics 
Special  Books  of  the  Bible 
Studies  in  Evolution 
Modern  Religious  Teachers 
The  Philosophy  of  Religion 

*  Material  for  the  Kindergarten  and  Advanced  departments  may  be  obtained  through  the 
Unitarian  Sunday-School  Society. 


A  LiUADED  COUHSE  OF   STl'DY    FOR   'I'lII-:  SUNDAY   SCHOOL 


JESUS    OF   NAZARETH 


BY 


CHAELES  EDWAEDS    PAER 


UNITARIAN   SUNDAY-SCHOOL  SOCIETY 
Boston,  25  Beacon  Street;  Chicago,  175  Dearborn  Street 


Copyright  by 

Unitarian  Sunday-School  Society 

1909 


CONTENTS. 


I,  Birth I 

II.  Bad  News 3 

III.  A  Hurried  Flight 5 

IV.  Growing  U|) 7 

V.  The  Great  Passover  Feast 9 

VI.  The  Fearless  Preacher 11 

VII.  Finding  his  Work 13 

VIII.  A  New  Home 15 

IX.  Making  Friends 17 

X.  A  Wonderful  Discovery ig 

XI.  An  Open-Air  Church 21 

XII.  A  Trip  across  the  Lake 23 

XIII.  Days  of  Ha|>piness 25 

XIV.  Becoming  I-'amous 27 

XV.  Hints  and  Suspicions 29 

XVI.  A  Secret  Problem 31 

XVII.  Messengers  from  John      ^^ 

XVIII.  Making  Enemies 35 

XIX.  The  Fate  of  John  the  Baptist 37 

XX.  A  Fugitive     39 

XXI.  Deciding  the  Problem 41 

XXII  A  Rift  of  Light 43 

XXIII.  The  F'irst  Temptation 45 

XXIV.  The  Second  Temptation 47 

XXV.  The  Third  Temptation 4g 

XXVI.  Starting  for  Jerusalem 51 

XXVII.  The  Journey ^^ 

XXVIII.  Dark  Forebodings 55 

XXIX.  Jericho ^7 

XXX.  A  Cry  of  Discouragement ^g 

XXXI.  Fulfilling  the  Prophecy 61 

XXXII.  A  Busy  Week 63 

XXXIII.  The  Last  Meal  Together      65 

XXXIV.  The  Darkest  Hour 67 

XXXV.  The  End 69 

XXXVI.  Conclusion 71 


JESUS   OF   NAZARETH. 
I.     Birth. 

Luke  II.   1-20. 

A  long  time  ago  there  was  a  carpenter  who  lived  in  a  little 
town  called  Nazareth.  His  tools  were  simj^le  and  few,  and 
the  wood  he  had  to  work  with  was  poor,  so  that  he  could  not 
do  the  fine  work  carpenters  do  nowadays.  His  name  was 
Joseph,  and  he  was  quite  poor.  But  he  married  a  girl  named 
Mary,  and  lived  humbly  and  contentedly  in  his  litdc  house  in 
Nazareth.  Mary  would  do  the  simple  housework  and  would 
spin  flax  or  grind  barley,  while  Joseph  worked  busily  with  his 
tools,  and  so  they  got  along  quite  nicely. 

One  day  Mary  was  made  very  happy  by  God  whispering  in 
her  heart  that  she  should  very  soon  have  a  little  child.  That 
was  good  news  to  Mar}^  and,  as  she  thought  about  it,  she 
determined  that  she  would  name  her  baby  "Jesus." 

Now,  some  time  after  Mary  had  learned  this  good  news, 
Joseph  came  home  one  day  and  said  they  should  have  to  go  to 
Bethlehem,  another  town,  on  some  matter  of  business.  So 
he  saddled  his  patient  little  donkey,  and  put  Mary  on  its  back, 
and  took  his  staff,  and  set  out  for  Bethlehem.  But  when  they 
reached  Bethlehem,  he  found  that  there  was  no  room  for  them 
in  any  house  or  at  the  inn.  So  he  went  into  a  little  stable  of 
the  inn,  where  the  cattle  lived,  and  he  and  Mary  lay  down  in 
the  sweet  hay  to  sleep.  That  very  night,  as  they  lay  sleeping 
on  the  hay  in  the  stable,  the  little  baby  was  born. 

The  good  news  had  at  last  come  true,  and  Mary  was  very 
happy  indeed.  She  laid  her  little  baby-boy  in  a  manger,  a 
trough  out  of  which  the  animals  ate  their  hay  and  grain,  which 
made  a  very  cosy  crib  for  him. 

Meanwhile  a  company  of  shepherds,  who  were  watching 
over  their  sheep  in  the  pasture  outside  of  the  town,  were  greatly 
startled  to  hear  a  wonderful  voice  which  seemed  to  come  to 
them  out  of  the  sky,  and  which  told  them  that  Jesus  was  to 


be  born  that  very  night.  They  determined  to  go  at  once  and 
see  this  baby.  So  they  found  the  stable,  and  were  the  first 
persons  to  give  their  welcome  to  the  little  child  Jesus. 


1.  In  what  country  were  the-  towns  of  Nazareth  and  Bethlehem? 

2.  What  name  does  that  country  bear  to-day? 

3.  In  what  province  was  Nazareth  ?     In  what  province  was  Bethlehem  ? 

4.  What  famous  city  was  very  near  Bethlehem? 

5.  Who  was  Cffisar  Augustus? 

6.  Wliy  was  Joseph  obliged  to  go  to  Bethlehem? 

7.  Why  did  they  take  up  their  quarters  in  a  stable  ? 

8.  How  many  years  ago  was  Jesus  born? 

9.  WTiat  do  we  call  his  birthday? 

ID.  Aside    from  his   parents,  who   were    the  first   persons   to  see  Jesus 
after  his  birth? 

11.  How  did  these  men  know  about  his  birth? 

12.  How  did  people  travel  in  those  days? 


II.     Bad  News. 
Matthew  II.  1-13. 

Mary  and  Joseph  had  to  stay  some  time  in  Bethlehem,  and 
the  stable  was  the  only  place  they  could  find  to  li\e  in.  But 
pretty  soon  people  in  the  village  jjegan  to  hear  the  news,  that 
a  little  baby  had  been  born  there  in  that  staljle,  and  lots  of 
visitors  came  to  see  him. 

One  day  among  these  visitors  there  came  three  strange, 
tall  men,  who  evidently  lived  in  a  foreign  land.  They  were 
very  kind  indeed  to  Mary  and  Jesus,  for  they  gave  him  some 
beautiful  little  golden  trinkets,  and  some  incense  and  myrrh, 
which  is  a  fragrant  ointment  something  like  perfumery.  They 
said  they  had  come  from  the  East,  and  were  going  down  to 
Egypt,  and  they  thought  they  would  stop  and  see  this  little 
baby,  because  they  knew  he  was  going  to  be  a  great  man. 

It  seems  that  these  three  men  were  magi,  or  wise  men,  who 
lived  in  a  country  where  people  were  very  fond  of  studying 
the  stars.  They  had  seen  some  curious  and  remarkable  con- 
stellation in  that  part  of  the  heavens  which  had  been  allotted 
to  the  fortunes  of  the  Jewish  nation.  From  seeing  this  con- 
stellation, they  had  come  to  the  conclusion  that  there  must  be 
some  great  king  or  prophet,  perhaps  even  the  Messiah,  just 
born  in  the  Jewish  country.  So  they  stopped  on  their  way 
to  Egypt  to  pay  their  respects  to  him.  It  was  queer  enough 
to  see  these  tall,  dark  strangers,  with  their  foreign  dress  and 
priceless  gifts,  bending  over  a  humble  manger  in  a  Judean 
stable.  It  filled  Mary's  heart  with  awe  and  wonder,  and  on 
the  whole  she  was  quite  relieved  when,  with  a  farewell  salaam, 
they  mounted  their  white  camels  and  went  their  way. 

That  night  poor  Joseph  had  a  dream,  which  came  perhaps 
as  a  result  of  this  visit.  He  dreamed  that  what  these  wise 
men  had  suggested  was  true,  that  his  little  baby-boy  was  indeed 
the  great  Messiah,  sent  from  Heaven  to  be  king  o\'er  the  Jews 
instead  of  Herod.  In  his  dream  he  thought  he  saw  Herod 
very  angry  at  the  birth  of  this  little  baby,  so  angry  that  he  was 


determined  to  kill  him.  We  may  be  sure  that  Joseph  awoke 
with  a  start,  and  slept  but  little  more  that  night,  and,  when 
morning  dawned,  he  lost  no  time  in  telling  Mary  his  evil  dream. 
They  were  childish,  superstitious  people,  who  believed  in 
dreams.  It  seemed  to  them  that  this  nightmare  was  un- 
doubtedly the  work  of  God's  warning  angel,  telling  them  the 
bad  news  so  that  they  could  escape  in  time. 


1.  What  name  was  given  to  these  three  strangers? 

2.  From  what  country  did  they  come? 

3.  To  whom  did  they  first  apply  for  guidance? 

4.  By  what  shrewd  answer  did  Herod  conceal  his  real  feelings? 

5.  How  were  they  led  to  the  house  where  Jesus  was  living? 

6.  What  is  frankincense?    What  is  myrrh? 

7.  Why  did  they  not  return  to  Herod,  as  he  had  asked  them  to  do  ? 

8.  How  was  Joseph  warned  of  Herod's  jealousy? 

9.  Whither  was  he  bidden  to  fly? 

10.  Why  should  Herod  wish  to  injure  the  little  baby? 

11.  How  far  was  Bethlehem  from  Jerusalem? 

12.  What  sort  of  a  king  was  Herod? 


%■ 


III.     A  Hurried  Flight. 

Matthew  II.  13-18. 

It  was  plahi  that  somcthino;  mu.st  1)C  done  at  once.  Jeru- 
salem was  only  two  hours'  walk  from  Bethlehem,  and  Herod's 
soldiers  might  arri\e  at  any  moment  to  carry  out  the  threat, 
and  make  the  bad  news  which  Joseph  dreamt  come  true.  Not 
a  moment  was  to  be  lost.  The  first  thing  to  be  done  was  to 
get  out  of  the  country  with  all  speed,  for  of  course  Herod  could 
not  touch  them  in  any  country  but  his  own. 

Now,  if  you  will  look  again  at  the  map,  you  will  see  that  the 
shortest  way  to  get  out  of  the  country  from  Bethlehem  is  to 
go  straight  south.  But  Joseph  did  not  choose  that  route, 
because  it  would  take  him  right  into  the  burning  deserts  of 
Arabia,  where  they  would  certainly  perish  of  hunger  and 
thirst.  The  next  shortest  way  out  of  the  country  is  to  travel 
east,  and  cross  the  Jordan  River.  But  Joseph  was  too  wise 
to  choose  that  route,  because  he  knew  that  the  ravines  and 
river  bottoms  of  the  eastern  wilderness  were  full  of  wild  beasts 
and  robbers,  among  whom  his  sweet  young  wife  and  little 
boy  would  be  in  great  peril. 

There  was  only  one  way  left.  He  must  travel  westward, 
along  the  paths  and  country  lanes,  until  he  struck  the  great 
caravan  road  which  skirted  the  shore  of  the  Mediterranean 
Sea,  running  from  Egypt  to  Babylonia.  Once  on  that  road, 
the  little  fugitive  family  would  be  safe,  for  it  was  a  famous, 
well-trodden  highway.  People  called  it  "the  Sea  Road." 
There  would  surely  be  many  kind-hearted  travelers  and 
merchants  on  it  who  would  protect  and  help  them. 

Joseph's  plan  was  speedily  made,  and  in  a  very  few  minutes 
the  donkey  was  saddled  again,  and  Mary  seated  on  its  back 
holding  her  precious  child,  while  Joseph,  with  his  staff,  took 
the  bridle  and  started  quietly  off.  The  journey  was  made  by 
easy  stages,  and  pretty  soon  they  reached  the  pleasant  country , 
of  Eg}^pt,  where  they  lived  in  safety  until  the  jealous  old  King 
Herod  died. 


6 

1.  Why  did  Joseph  start  by  night? 

2.  How  was  Herod  "mocked  by  the  wise  men"? 

3.  How  did  this  mocking  make  him  fee!? 

4.  What  fearful  deed  did  he  order  his  soldiers  to  commit? 

5.  What  was  his  purpose  in  committing  such  an  outrage? 

6.  How  old  were  his  victims? 

7.  How  many  victims  do  you  suppose  there  must  have  been? 

8.  How  long  do  you  think  it  took  Joseph  and  Mary  to  reach  Egypt  ? 

9.  What  animal  did  people  in  those  days  use  for  desert  travel,  and  why? 

10.  Wliat  kind  of  wild  animals  lived  in  those  regions? 

11.  Why  was  the  great  highway  which  Joseph  followed  called  "the  Sea 

Road"? 

12.  Do  you  know  any  of  the  stories  that  are  told  of  the  incidents  that 

befell  them  upon  this  journey  ? 


IV.     Growing  Up. 

Matthew  II.  19-23;   Luke  II.  40. 

It  is  hard  to  say  just  how  long  Joscj)!!  kept  his  family  down 
in  the  land  of  Egypt  or  just  what  they  did  while  they  were 
there.  The  old  legends  tell  us  a  few  things  about  their  visit, 
—how  thev  camped  out  under  palm-trees,  how  the  good  fairies 
came  and  took  care  of  them,  and  how  the  birds  used  to  flutter 
about  the  little  baby  and  delight  him  with  their  bright  plu- 
mage and  graceful  motions. 

But  pretty  soon  Joseph  had  another  dream.  This  time  it 
was  a  good  one.  He  dreamt  that  King  Herod  was  dead,  and 
that  now  there  was  no  one  in  the  whole  country  who  would 
wish  to  hurt  his  little  boy. 

So  Joseph,  believing  his  dream  was  true,  saddled  his  donkey 

.again,  and  again  the  little  family  started  joyously  forth  along 

the  level  Sea  Road,  to  go  back  to  their  own  land  and  their 

simple  home  in  Nazareth.     In  due  time  they  arrived  safe  and 

sound,  and  were  cordially  welcomed  by  their  friends. 

At  this  time  Jesus  might  have  been  two  or  three  years  old, 
and,  as  he  had  never  seen  his  own  home,  it  was  all  very  interest- 
ing and  exciting  for  him.  So  he  quickly  grew  up  in  that  quiet 
litde  Galilean  village,  just  as  lots  of  other  children  around  him 
were  growing  up.  Nor  was  Jesus  the  only  child  in  the  family. 
For  his  father  Joseph  had  been  married  before,  and  had  four 
sons  and  at  least  two  daughters,  all  of  whom  were  older  than 
Jesus.  We  know  the  names  of  Jesus'  brothers.  They  were 
Joseph,  called  after  his  father,  and  James  and  Simon  and 
Judas.     We  do  not  know  the  girls'  names. 

Jesus  and  his  brothers  made  friends  among  the  little  village 
children,  and  played  games  with  them  in  the  sunny  street. 
Their  amusements  were  not  unlike  our  own.  They  liked  to 
play  with  wet  clay,  making  mud  pics  or  l)irds  and  animals. 
They  liked  to  play  wedding,  when  they  would  all  form  in  a 
procession  and  go  dancing  and  singing  down  the  street,  just 
as  people  did  in  real  weddings. 


8 

When  Jesus  got  a  little  older,  he  went  to  school  in  the  syna- 
gogue, where  he  sat  on  the  floor  with  his  back  to  the  teacher, 
and  studied  his  lessons  out  loud.  It  made  the  school-room 
a  very  noisy  place,  but  still  the  scholars  had  to  be  good  and 
study  hard,  for  they  had  a  very  strict  teacher.  After  school  he 
used  to  come  home  and  help  his  father  in  the  carpenter's  shop. 
In  this  quiet  and  busy  manner  Jesus  gradually  became  a 
strong,  intelligent  boy. 


1.  Who  succeeded  Herod  as  king  of  Judea? 

2.  Where  did  Joseph  take  his  little  family  to  Hve  on  his  return  ? 

3.  How  many  brothers  and  sisters  did  Jesus  have? 

4.  What  were  the  brothers'  names? 

5.  What  makes  us  suppose  that  they  played  wedding  and  funeral? 

6.  How  did  they  play  wedding?     How  did  they  play  funeral? 

7.  Where  did  they  go  to  school? 

8.  What  did  they  learn  in  school  ? 

9.  In  what  kind  of  a  house  did  they  live? 

10.  What  kind  of  clothes  did  they  wear? 

11.  What  did  they  have  to  eat? 

12.  Why  did  Jesus  expect  to  become  a  carpenter? 


V.    The  Great  Passover  Feast. 

Luke  II.  41-52. 

Jesus  was  not  at  all  tied  down  to  a  monotonous  routine  of 
sehool  and  work.  It  is  true  his  father  was  a  jxjor  man  who 
needed  all  the  help  he  could  get;  and  his  family,  Hke  all  humble 
Jewish  families,  had  but  two  meals  a  day.  It  is  true  the 
teacher  in  the  synagogue  school  was  strict,  and  made  the 
scholars  work  hard.  But  there  were  ample  chances  for  frolic, 
and  there  were  frequent  holidays. 

The  Sabbath,  for  instance,  was  observed  very  strictly  as  a 
day  of  rest  and  joy.  It  was  a  day  on  which  no  work  of  any 
kind  could  be  done,  but  it  was  not  a  day  of  stiff  and  irksome 
indolence.  It  was  a  day  for  going  to  church  and  for  relaxa- 
tion and  change.  In  addition  to  the  weekly  Sabbath  there 
were  three  great  annual  feasts,  and  many  lesser  ones,  which 
required  from  two  to  eight  days  to  celebrate. 

Chief  among  the  feasts  was  the  great  Passover,  which  came 
early  in  .spring,  and  which  all  who  possibly  could  were  ex- 
pected to  attend.  It  was  held  in  Jerusalem,  and  it  lasted 
eight  days.  Jesus  had  never  been  to  a  Passover,  but  when  he 
was  twelve  years  old,  and  could  understand  a  good  deal  of 
what  he  saw  and  heard,  his  father  consented  to  take  him.  So, 
when  the  time  came,  they  joined  a  little  company  of  friends, 
and  went  to  Jerusalem. 

We  can  well  imagine  that  Jesus  had  a  splendid  time.  The 
sights  were  all  so  new  and  wonderful.  The  ma.ssive  walls 
and  glistening  roofs  of  the  great  city  filled  him  with  delight. 
He  wandered  around  through  the  city  and  all  through  the  beau- 
tiful temple,  and,  when  it  came  time  to  go  home,  he  forgot  all 
about  the  three  days'  journey  and  the  friends  who  would  miss 
him.  His  parents  looked  for  him  the  first  night  out,  but  he 
was  nowhere  to  be  found.  They  went  back  and  searched  the 
city,  but  in  vain.  Then  Mary  remembered  how  interested 
he  had  been  in  the  temple,  and  she  and  Joseph  went  there  to 
look. 


lO 

Sure  enough,  in  a  secluded  corner,  seated  in  the  center  of 
a  group  of  grave,  learned  Rabbis,  was  Jesus.  He  was  asking 
them  questions,  and  they  were  wondering  at  his  intelligence. 
His  face  was  radiant  with  interest  and  excitement.  When  his 
mother  reproached  him,  and  told  him  how  they  had  searched 
everywhere  for  him,  he  i-eplied  quietly,  Why  did  you  hunt  so 
for  me  ?  Did  you  not  know  that  I  should  be  in  but  one  place, 
here  in  God's  temple?  So  they  found  him,  and  started  back 
again,  and  soon  overtook  their  friends.  But  from  that  time 
Mary  and  Joseph  realized  that  their  son  would  be  a  thought- 
ful, serious-minded  man,  to  whom  the  deeper  problems  of 
life  and  law  were  of  first  importance. 


1.  How  much  of  a  journey  was  it  from  Nazareth  to  Jerusalem  ? 

2.  How  did  people  make  this  journey  ? 

3.  Where  did  they  stay  in  Jerusalem  ? 

4.  What  great  building  in  Jerusalem  was  the  center  of  common  interest  ? 

5.  How  far  had  Joseph  and  Mary  gone  on  their  return  before  they  missed 

Jesus? 

6.  How  long  did  they  hunt  for  him  in  the  city? 

7.  Where  did  they  finally  find  him  ? 

8.  What  was  he  doing? 

9.  With  what  words  did  Mary  rebuke  him  for  giving  them  such  a  fright? 

10.  How  did  he  reply? 

11.  In  verse  49,  to  whom  does  he  refer  by  the  word  "Father"? 

12.  What  event  in  Jewish  history  does  the  Passover  commemorate? 


VI.    The  Fearless  Preacher. 

Matthew  III.  1-12;   Mark  I.  18;  Luke  III.  1-20. 

From  the  age  of  twelve  until  he  Ijecame  a  full-grown  young 
man  we  know  nothing  at  all  about  Jesus.  These  were  years 
of  great  e.xcitemcnt  in  Judea.  The  people  were  sure  that  God 
would  send  them  a  messenger  to  conquer  their  enemies  and 
to  organize  them  into  the  greatest  nation  on  earth.  Every 
one  was  trembling  with  eagerness  at  thought  of  the  Messiah 
who  was  about  to  come. 

One  day,  some  ten  or  fifteen  years  after  Jesus  got  lost  in 
Jerusalem,  there  came  to  Galilee  a  rumor  which  caused  great 
excitement  and  set  everybody  talking.  The  rumor  said  that 
a  wild-looking  man  had  suddenly  appeared  near  Jerusalem 
from  the  southern  wilderness,  and  had  begun  to  preach  and 
promise  that  the  Messiah,  the  great  king  whom  God  should 
send,  would  very  shortly  come. 

This  wild-looking  preacher  was  named  John.  Very  few 
people  knew  where  he  came  from  or  what  family  he  belonged 
to.  He  was  about  thirty  years  old,  and  all  he  wore  was  a 
mantle,  or  tunic,  of  camel's-hair  cloth,  such  as  the  desert  wan- 
derers in  the  south  made.  He  had  also  a  belt  of  coarse  leather 
around  his  waist,  and  his  face  was  pinched  and  brown.  What 
with  his  bright  eyes  and  long,  streaming  hair,  he  made  a  very 
strange,  impressive  figure.  People  said  he  had  lived  in  the 
wilderness  all  his  life,  eating  only  the  honey  of  wild  bees  and 
the  locusts,  or  grasshoppers,  which  he  could  catch  in  abun- 
dance, and  which  make  very  good  eating,  if  they  are  fried  in 
butter. 

But  the  most  remarkable  thing  about  this  man  was  the  way 
he  preached.  Such  fervent,  earnest  oratory  had  not  been 
heard  since  the  days  of  the  prophets,  and  people  swarmed 
out  from  all  the  region  to  hear  him.  Throngs  went  every  day 
from  Jerusalem,  and  curious  or  interested  listeners  came  from 
the  towns  to  the  north,  and  some  even  from  Galilee. 

When  Jesus  heard  these  rumors  of  John   and  of  his  won- 


12 

derful  preaching,  he  determined  to  go  and  hear  him.  He  had 
been  thinking  quietly,  all  his  life,  about  the  Messiah  whom 
God  was  expected  to  send,  and  he  had  his  own  ideas  of  what 
his  ofhce  and  work  should  be.  He  thought  he  should  Hke 
very  much  to  hear  what  this  fearless  hermit  had  to  say  about 
him.  So  Jesus  joined  a  small  party  of  young  enthusiasts  who 
all  wanted  to  see  this  strange  man,  and,  leaving  the  home  and 
the  carpenter-shop,  started  off  for  Jerusalem  with  his  friends. 
He  little  thought  how  momentous  a  step  he  was  taking,  and 
how  changed  a  man  he  would  be  when  next  he  saw  that  humble 
home  a\id  that  busy  little  shop  again. 


1.  What  was  the  preacher's  name? 

2.  Why  is  it  right  to  call  him  a  fearless  preacher? 

3.  Where  had  he  been  living  before  he  began  to  preach? 

4.  How  was  he  clothed  and  what  did  he  eat? 

5.  Wliat  did  he  urge  people  to  do,  if  they  wished  to  belong  to  the  Messiah's 

kingdom  ? 

6.  ^Vhere  did  he  baptize  them  ? 

7.  What  nation  did  the  Jews  regard  as  their  greatest  enemy  ? 

8.  Why  did  the  Jews  believe  that  their  Messiah  would  come  just  at  that 

time? 

9.  What  do  the  words  "Christ"  and  "Messiah"  mean? 

10.  How  did  the  Jews  expect  to  recognize  their  Messiah  when  he  came  ? 

11.  How  did  John  reply  when  the  people  asked  him  if  he  was  the  Messiah  ? 

12.  Was  there  any  relationship  between  John  and  Jesus? 


VII.     Finding  his  Work. 

Matthew  III.  13  17;  Mark  1.  9-11;   Like  III.  21-22. 

A  small  compan}-  of  young  men  could  tra\cl  si.xty-ihc  or 
seventy  miles  very  ([uickly.  It  was  not  long  before  Jesus  and 
his  companions  reached  the  vicinity  of  Jerusalem.  They 
began  to  meet  other  little  companies,  all  headed  in  one  direc- 
tion. Guided  by  these,  they  soon  reached  the  quiet  little  spot 
on  the  Jordan  River  where  John  was  living,  and  where  he 
preached  e\ery  day.  They  found  c^uite  a  throng  there,  seated 
on  the  grass  or  standing  around  in  easy  attitudes,  and  all  listen- 
ing intently  to  a  tall,  gaunt  figure,  who  was  pouring  out  a  per- 
fect torrent  of  stirring  words. 

It  was  not  long  before  Jesus  was  intensely  interested.  The 
preacher  was  telling  about  the  Messiah,  how  he  would  shortly 
come,  and  vhat  kind  of  a  ruler  he  would  be.  He  said  that 
this  Messiah  would  come  very  soon  to  organize  a  great  king- 
dom, the  greatest  in  the  world,  and  that,  while  none  but  Jews 
would  belong  to  that  kingdom,  yet  not  even  all  Jews  would  be 
admitted,  but  only  those  who  repented  of  their  sins  and  deter- 
mined to  live  better  lives.  He  warned  them  that,  if  they 
wanted  to  belong  to  this  kingdom,  they  must  prepare  them- 
selves by  discarding  their  sinful  ways  and  changing  their 
manner  of  life. 

Then  he  said  he  was  the  forerunner  of  the  Messiah,  sent  to 
prepare  the  nation  for  his  coming,  and  he  invited  all  who 
agreed  with  him,  and  who  would  promise  to  follow  his  advice 
and  prepare  themselves  in  the  truer  way,  to  be  baptized  in  the 
Jordan  River. 

Now  Jesus  had  listened  with  beating  heart  and  flaming 
eyes.  This  man  had  said  just  what  he  had  secretly  believed 
all  along.  He  agreed  with  him  perfectly.  Moreover,  it  seemed 
to  him  his  plain  duty  to  adopt  John's  work  and  become  a 
prophet  of  the  Messiah.  It  was  the  best  service  he  could 
render.  The  carpenter-shop  seemed  far  away  and  unimport- 
ant compared   to   this  urgent  duty    which  John's   preaching 


14 

had  revealed  to  him.  It  came  over  him  like  a  flash.  Here 
was  the  work  God  meant  him  to  do !  He  had  found  it  at  last. 
It  was  a  critical  moment  in  his  life,  but  he  made  the  resolu- 
tion bravely  and  completely.  He  would  be  a  preacher  and  a 
reformer  as  John  was.  He  would  spend  his  time  and  strength 
in  the  great  task  of  preparing  his  countrymen  for  the  coming 
of  their  King,  so  that,  when  the  time  came,  they  should  be 
ready  to  welcome  him. 

With  this  determination  he  entered  the  river  and  was  baptized 
by  John.  When  he  came  out  of  the  water,  he  was  a  changed 
man,  for  he  had  found  his  work. 


1.  Did  John  want  to  baptize  Jesus? 

2.  Why  did  he  hesitate  ? 

3.  What  did  it  mean  that  a  man  was  baptized  by  John? 

4.  How  was  the  baptism  done,  do  you  suppose? 

5.  Where  was  it  done? 

6.  What  wonderful  thing  happened  as  Jesus  came  out  of  the  water  ? 

7.  Why  should  we  think  that   Jesus  had  no   particular  interest  in  his 

carpenter  work  ? 

8.  Why  did  he  go  into  the  carpenter's  trade  ? 

9.  How  old  do  you  suppose  Jesus  was  at  the  time  he  changed  his  work  ? 

10.  Did  Jesus  wait  until  John  was  arrested  before  he  began  to  preach? 

11.  Where  did  he  go  to  do  his  preaching,  and  why? 

12.  In  what  way  does  his  preaching  resemble  John's? 


VIII.     A  New  Home. 

Matthew  IV.  12-16;   Luke  IV.  14-30. 

Very  shortly  after  Jesu.s  hati  l^een  baptized  in  the  River 
Jordan,  a  serious  disaster  befell  the  man  to  whose  preaching 
he  had  listened  and  at  whose  hands  he  had  received  his  baptism. 

John  was  one  of  those  fearless  men  who  will  speak  the  plain 
truth  to  everybody  without  thinking  of  consequences.  He 
did  not  know  what  it  meant  to  be  politic  or  cautious.  He  had 
found  occasion  in  one  or  two  of  his  sermons  to  condemn  very 
bitterly  the  private  life  of  one  of  the  prominent  men  in  the 
country,  Herod  Antipas,  the  son  of  Herod  the  Great.  Thi.^ 
Herod  Antipas  had  done  some  wicked  things,  which  John 
promptly  denounced  in  his  fearless  and  fiery  way.  As  a  re- 
sult, Herod's  officers  came  one  day  and  arrested  John,  and  put 
him  in  prison,  so  that  his  career  as  a  preacher  was  cut  sud- 
denly short.  When  Jesus  heard  this  news,  he  felt  that  his 
own  actions  must  be  determined  by  John's  fortune.  Now  that 
John  was  shut  up  in  prison,  Jesus  saw  that  it  was  more  than 
ever  his  duty  to  take  John's  place  and  preach  about  the  Messiah, 
but  he  also  saw  that,  if  he  began  to  preach  in  that  neighborhood, 
around  Jerusalem,  he  might  e.xpect  much  the  same  fate.  He 
considered  his  mission  too  important  to  be  exposed  to  any  such 
peril,  so  he  decided  to  go  back  to  Galilee,  to  his  own  home,  and 
begin  his  preaching  there. 

But,  when  he  got  there,  he  found  still  another  difficulty 
waiting  for  him.  The  people  of  Nazareth  had  known  him  ever 
since  his  childhood.  He  had  grown  up  among  them.  It 
would  be  embarrassing,  to  say  the  least,  to  go  back  to  that 
old  home,  where  he  had  always  been  known  as  a  quiet,  humble 
carpenter,  and  set  himself  up  as  a  preacher  and  a  prophet. 
People  would  pay  no  heed  to  him.  They  would  be  too  fa- 
miliar with  him  and  his  family  to  give  him  the  respectful  atten- 
tion he  should  demand.  So  he  decided  to  go  to  the  near-by 
town  of  Capernaum,  where  he  was  a  stranger,  and  start  his 
new  life  in  that  new  home. 


i6 

Some  time  later  a  little  thing  happened  which  showed  the 
wisdom  of  this  change.  After  he  had  been  in  Capernaum  a 
while,  he  made  a  visit  to  Nazareth  one  Sabbath  day,  and,  enter- 
ing the  synagogue,  he  rose  to  speak  to  the  people.  At  tirst  they 
were  astonished.  They  said  to  each  other.  Why,  is  not  this 
Joseph's  son,  Jesus  the  carpenter?  Do  not  his  mother  and 
his  brothers  all  live  among  us?  But  later  on,  when  Jesus  said 
something  they  did  not  like,  they  got  so  angry  with  him  that 
they  seized  him,  and  would  have  done  him  hurt,  but  that  he 
managed  to  escape  from  them.  After  that  he  returned  to 
his  new  home  in  Capernaum,  and  had  nothing  more  to  do 
with  Nazareth. 


1.  What  do  you  understand  to  be  the  "power  of  the  Spirit"? 

2.  What  day  of  the  week  did  the  Jews  observe  as  the  Sabbath? 

3.  How  came  it  that  Jesus  was  allowed  to  stand  up  in  the  synagogue  to 

teach  ? 

4.  What  kind  of  a  book  was  handed  to  him? 

5.  From  what  Old  Testament  prophet  did  he  select  his  text? 

6.  How  did  the  people  receive  his  preaching? 

7.  What  violent  attempt  did  they  make  upon  his  life? 

8.  Where  did  he  go  to  live  after  this  ? 

9.  What  is  the  sea,  mentioned  in  Matthew  iv.  13? 

10.  What  were  its  names,  and  how  big  was  it  ? 

11.  What  was  the  principal  industry  of  Nazareth?  of  Capernaum? 

12.  What  famous  proverb  is  taken  from  this  lesson? 


IX.     Making  Friends. 
Matthew  IV.  18-22;  Mark  I.  16-20;"  Lvkk  V.  i-ii. 

Although  Capernaum  was  near  Nazarclh,  it  was  a  dilTcrent 
kind  of  a  place.  Tt  was  a  busy,  thrivin<^  lillle  village,  built  on 
a  beautiful  plain  running  along  the  shore  of  the  Sea  of  (lalilee. 
Unlike  Nazareth,  where  the  ])rincipal  occupation  \vas  farming 
and  sheep-raising,  Capernaum's  chief  industry  was  fishing. 
The  shore  of  the  lake  near  the  town  was  lined  with  funny  little 
fishing-boats,  with  tall,  graceful  lateen  sails,  and  with  long 
fish-nets  spread  out  on  the  decks  to  dry  in  the  sun.  The  little 
fresh-water  fish  were  caught,  sometimes  in  vast  quantities,  and 
w-ere  cured  either  by  drying  or  by  pickling  in  brine,  and,  thus 
prepared,  formed  an  important  article  of  food  for  the  poorer 
people  of  Galilee. 

Jesus  was  greatly  attracted  by  these  curious  fishing-boats 
and  by  the  sturdy  men  who  worked  in  them.  He  would  often 
go  down  to  the  shore  and  watch  the  little  craft  swinging  at 
anchor,  or  get  to  talking  with  the  fishermen  themselves  as  they 
sat  in  their  boats  and  mended  their  nets.  In  this  way  he  made 
a  number  of  friends. 

He  liked  especially  one  old  man  named  Zebedee,  who  had 
two  young  sons  about  Jesus'  own  age,  James  and  John.  He 
used  to  sit  for  hours  talking  with  these  three,  telling  them 
about  the  kingdom  and  the  Messiah,  while  they  would  get  so 
interested  in  his  talk  that  they  would  forget  their  broken  nets, 
and  would  listen,  open-eyed,  to  his  earnest  words. 

Then  there  were  two  other  men  of  whom  he  was  very  fond. 
They  were  Simon  and  Andrew,  two  brothers,  who  owned  a 
boat  together,  and  carried  on  an  active  industry.  They  were 
somew^hat  older  than  he  was,  but  they  grew  to  love  him  and 
respect  him  very  highly.  These  four  men,  Simon  and  Andrew 
and  the  two  sons  of  Zebedee,  soon  became  the  dearest  friends 
Jesus  had  in  Capernaum,  so  that  fmally  they  all  decided  to  give 
up  their  fishing,  and  simply  become  companions  of  his,  follow- 
ing him  e\erywhere  and  learning  to  preach  as  he  preached. 


i8 

In  this  way  there  was  started  a  little  company  of  warm 
friends,  who  gathered  around  Jesus,  and  who  made  themselves 
partners  in  his  work  and  in  his  hopes.  There  were  in  all 
twelve  in  the  company.  Most  of  them  were  fishermen,  but 
some  were  farmers  and  shepherds,  and  one  was  a  tax-collector. 
But,  whatever  their  work  was,  they  all  came  to  have  such  a 
warm  liking  for  Jesus  and  such  an  enthusiasm  for  the  work 
he  was  doing  that  they  gave  up  their  lives  to  the  pleasant 
task  of  following  him  and  helping  him.  They  called  them- 
selves his  "disciples",  which  means  his  "pupils". 


1.  What  was  Simon's  other  name,  and  what  does  it  mean  ? 

2.  What  were  Simon  and  Andrew  doing  when  Jesus  saw  them? 

3.  What  occupation  did  Jesus  promise  to  teach  them  ? 

4.  Where  were  James  and  John  when  Jesus  saw  them  ? 

5.  According  to  the  story  in  Luke,  why  did  Jesus  step  into  one  of  the 

boats? 

6.  What  remarkable  thing  happened  when  he  asked  Simon  to  let  down 

his  nets? 

7.  What  did  Simon  do  and  say  when  he  saw  this  wonder? 

8.  What  business  relation  existed  between  James  and  John  and  Simon 

and  Andrew? 

9.  How  many  disciples  were  there  in  all,  and  what  were  their  names? 

10.  What  is  a  disciple  ? 

11.  Do  you  know  what  the  occupations  of  some  of  the  other  disciples  were  ? 

12.  In  what  way  did  they  help  Jesus,  and  why  did  he  feel  the  need  of  their 

help? 


X.     A  Wonderful   Discovery. 

Mark  I.  21-2S;  Luke  IV.  31-37. 

Of  course,  this  company  of  young  men  who  went  around 
always  together,  and  who  always  preached  or  talketl  about  the 
kingdom  of  Ciod,  attracted  a  good  deal  of  attention  in  Caper- 
naum. People  in  those  days  were  even  more  deeply  inter- 
ested in  the  kingdom  of  God  than  we  are  to-day  in  the  great 
political  or  social  questions  of  our  time. 

Jesus  had  no  difficulty  whatever  in  interesting  people  about 
his  work,  especially  as  he  talked  al)out  it  so  earnestly.  A  great 
many  people  heard  him  preach,  not  only  in  Capernaum,  but 
from  towns  roundabout.  They  began  to  know  him  by  sight 
and  by  reputation.  They  began  to  look  upon  him  as  some- 
thing of  a  man,  because  he  talked  so  convincingly,  and  so 
clearly. 

Now  one  Sabbath  day  Jesus  went  into  the  synagogue  with 
his  friends,  and  began  to  talk  to  the  people.  At  once  the 
room  was  still.  Everybody  wanted  to  hear  what  this  famous 
man  would  say.  They  sat  silently  on  the  floor,  and  drank  in 
his  words.  Suddenly  right  in  the  midst  of  the  stillness  there 
came  a  startling  interruption.  It  came  from  a  poor  man  over 
in  the  back  corner,  who  was  not  perfectly  well.  He  was  subject 
to  occasional  spasms,  or  fits.  Whenever  such  a  fit  seized  him, 
he  would  throw  back  his  head,  and  roll  his  eyes,  and  clench  his 
hands,  and  shriek  aloud,  no  matter  where  he  was.  Quite  a 
number  of  people  in  that  country  had  this  ailment.  They 
used  to  say  it  was  because  a  devil,  or  a  bad  spirit,  lived  in  them, 
and  made  them  do  these  strange  things.  This  poor  fellow  had 
a  fit  right  in  the  middle  of  Jesus'  talk.  It  was  a  startling  in- 
terruption.    Everybody  turned  to  see  what  the  matter  was. 

Jesus  also  turned,  and  saw  the  sick  man  shaking  his  head 
from  side  to  side  and  rolling  his  eyes.  So  he  pointed  directly 
at  him  with  his  finger,  and  said  very  firmly,  Hold  thy  peace! 
And  then  a  wonderful  thing  happened.  Instantly  the  fit  left 
the  poor  victim.     He  raised  his  head  and  looked  quietly  at 


20 

Jesus,  as  much  as  to  say,  Yes,  Master.  He  was  cured  of  his 
illness.  Every  one  in  the  synagogue  was  astounded.  How 
did  Jesus  cure  the  man  ?  Where  did  he  get  the  power  to  make 
him  well? 

We  cannot  help  feeling  that  Jesus  himself  was  amazed  at 
finding  that  he  had  such  an  influence  over  sick  people.  He  was 
looked  upon  by  the  superstitious  Galileans  with  even  greater 
awe.  People  talked  about  his  power,  and  brought  their  friends 
to  be  healed.  It  was  a  great  discovery,  and  added  greatly  to 
his  opportunity.  And  Jesus,  in  a  very  noble  way,  accepted  this 
new  power  as  a  solemn  trust,  and  used  it  faithfully  in  curing 
and  quieting  the  sufferers  he  constantly  saw  about  him. 


I. 


WTiere  was  Jesus  teaching  one  Sabbath  day  ? 

2.  What  strange  interruption  stopped  him  in  the  middle  of  his  talk? 

3.  What  was  the  trouble  with  this  man  ? 

4.  Was  this  a  common  ailment  in  that  country  ? 

5.  What  words  did  the  man  utter? 

6.  How  did  Jesus  answer  the  sufferer? 

7.  How  did  this  affect  the  man  with  the  unclean  spirit? 

8.  What  does  it  mean  by  saying  that  "the  unclean  spirit  came  out  of 

him"? 

9.  What  did  the  people  think  when  they  saw  this  incident  ? 

10.  Was  this  power  of  casting  out  demons  peculiar  to  Jesus,  or  did  others 

possess  it? 

11.  How  did  this  power  increase  his  influence? 

12.  Was  Jesus  himself  glad  to  find  that  he  had  this  power? 


XI.     An  Open-Air  Church. 
Matthew  V.-VIL;  Luke  V'I.  20-49. 

The  discover)-  of  this  power  was  a  great  help  to  Jesus, 
because  it  enabled  him  to  do  so  much  ])ractical  good  to  the 
unfortunates  who  came  to  hear  him.  Before  long  every  one 
in  Capernaum  was  talking  about  the  quiet,  grave-eyed  man 
who  could  cure  some  forms  of  sickness  simj^ly  by  the  strength 
and  calmness  of  his  personal  inlluence.  People  came  eagerly, 
in  great  numbers,  to  see  him,  and  hear  him  preach  about  the 
Messiah  who  was  coming  to  establish  the  kingdom  of  God. 

Jesus  himself  believed  the  Messiah  might  come  almost  any 
minute,  and  most  devout  Jews  shared  this  expectation.  There- 
fore, Jesus  was  all  the  more  anxious  to  get  people  ready  for 
him.  To  do  this,  they  must  be  induced  to  repent  of  their 
old  sins  and  live  more  cleanly  and  nobly,  for  it  was  only  clean 
and  noble  men  and  women  whom  the  ^Messiah  would  take  into 
his  kingdom.  So  Jesus  preached  constantly,  urging  every 
one  to  better  living;  and  the  people  came  in  such  crowds  to 
hear  him  that  no  one  house  could  hold  them  all. 

It  was  for  this  reason  that  one  fine  morning,  when  hun- 
dreds of  people  had  assembled  to  listen,  Jesus  led  the  whole 
compan\-  out  to  a  nearby  hillside,  where  they  all  sat  down 
around  him  on  the  soft  grass,  and  had  an  outdoor  church. 
Jesus  sat  in  the  center,  and  preached  them  a  long,  beautiful 
sermon.  We  may  read  the  entire  sermon  in  the  Gospel  of 
Matthew.  It  is  called  "The  Sermon  on  the  Mount,"  because 
Jesus  preached  it  outdoors  on  this  hillside.  It  told  people 
how  they  must  act  and  live  to  become  worthy  of  the  kingdom 
of  God.' 

One  striking  thing  about  the  sermon  is  that  it  is  still  true. 
It  was  preached  nearly  two  thousand  years  ago,  and  the  king- 
dom of  God  has  not  quite  come  yet,  but  the  instructions  in 
that  sermon  for  entering  that  kingdom  are  just  as  true  and 
just  as  important  for  us  to-day  as  they  were  for  the  Galilean 
people  to  whom  they  were  uttered  almost  two  thousand  years 


22 

ago.  The  three  chapters  in  Matthew  rank  among  the  most 
beautiful  and  most  famous  passages  of  the  world's  literature. 
There  are  portions  which  every  one  should  know  by  heart, 
as,  for  instance,  the  first  twelve  verses  of  chapter  v.,  and  in 
chapter  vi.,  verses  5  to  15. 

We  may  see  in  this  sermon  how  fond  Jesus  was  of  nature, 
how  observant  he  was  of  birds  and  flowers  and  grasses  and 
rain-storms.  In  all  these  things  he  seemed  to  see  the  work- 
ings of  God's  just  and  loving  spirit,  and  was  glad  and  proud 
to  feel  himself  a  son  of  that  great  God  who  worked  and  breathed 
in  the  life  and  beauty  around  him. 


1.  What  name  is  given  to  the  passage  in  Matthew  v.  1-12? 

2.  What  is  the  appropriateness  of  this  name? 

3.  What  is  a  jot  and  a  tittle  ? 

4.  What  does  "Raca"  mean? 

5.  Can  you  find  the  Old  Testament  commandments  which  Jesus  quotes 

in  verses  21,  ^^,  38,  and  43  of  chapter  v.  ? 

6.  How  does  he  improve  upon  these  old  commandments? 

7.  Reading  Matthew  vi.   2,  do  you  suppose  that  the  hypocrites  really 

"sounded  a  trumpet"  when  they  gave  alms? 

8.  What  do  we  call  this  way  of  talking? 

9.  What  name  is  given  to  the  passage  in  Matthew  vi.  9-13? 

10.  Who  was  Solomon? 

11.  Can  you  describe  a  "  lily  of  the  field"? 

12.  What  us  a  mote?  and  what  is  a  beam? 


XII.     A  Trip  across  the  Lake. 

Matthew  VIII.  23-34;  Mark  IV.  35-V.  20;   Luke  VIII.  22-39. 

Jesus  (lid  not  stay  always  in  Capernaum.  He  made  fre- 
quent trips  to  the  towns  in  the  neighborhood.  Chora/.in, 
Bethsaida,  Magdala,  Tiberias,  Emmaus,  Cana,  Nain,  Scy- 
thopolis, — all  these  places  he  visited.  He  thought  it  his  duty 
to  preach  to  as  many  people  as  possible. 

One  day  he  determined  to  cross  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  and 
visit  one  or  two  towns  on  the  other  side.  It  was  a  short  jour- 
ney. He  and  the  disciples  embarked  in  a  fishing-boat,  and 
sailed  merrily  along.  Jesus  leaned  back  upon  the  stern  seat, 
and  soon  fell  asleep.  All  at  once,  when  they  were  about  half- 
way across  the  lake,  a  furious  squall  stmck  them.  It  was  .so 
\iolent,  and  the  waves  ran  so  high,  that  everybody  got  fright- 
ened. They  ran  to  Jesus  and  woke  him  up,  and  said,  Master, 
help  us,  or  we  will  all  drown.  Jesus  very  calmly  asked  them, 
Why  are  you  afraid?  And,  sure  enough,  in  a  very  few  min- 
utes the  squall  stopped, — the  disciples  firmly  believed  that  Jesus 
made  it  stop;  and  they  went  sailing  on  their  way. 

As  soon  as  they  landed  on  the  other  side,  the  first  person 
they  saw  was  another  of  those  poor  men  who  were  half  crazed 
by  epilepsy.  He  was  prowling  around  in  a  Ride  little  grave- 
yard, and,  as  soon  as  he  spied  Jesus  and  his  friends,  he  came 
rushing  out  to  meet  them,  almost  like  a  wild  animal.  But 
Jesus,  you  remember,  possessed  a  wonderful  influence  over 
such  unfortunate  creatures,  and  it  was  not  long  before  this 
savage  man  began  to  feel  this  influence  from  his  strong  and 
quieting  personality,  so  that  he  acted  and  looked  just  like  an 
ordinar}-  person. 

But,  as  they  all  walked  along,  a  swineherd  met  them,  who 
was  so  astonished  to  see  this  poor  outcast  walking  soberly 
along  with  a  company  of  strange  men  that  he  aished  off  to 
the  village  and  spread  the  report  that  a  wonderful  magician 
was  coming,  who  had  already  cured  the  lunatic  and  had  made 
his  herd  of  swine  crazy  instead.     This  report  frightened  the  * 


24 

villagers.  They  did  not  know  what  this  magician  might  do 
to  them.  So  they  came  out  to  meet  Jesus,  and  begged  him 
to  go  away.  Jesus  saw  that  he  could  not  preach  to  them, 
that  in  their  fright  they  would  neither  listen  nor  believe,  so 
he  and  his  friends  turned  back  and  launched  the  boat  again, 
and  returned  to  Capernaum  without  mishap. 


1.  Into  whose  boat  might  Jesus  have  entered  in  order  to  cross  the  lake? 

2.  What  happened  as  soon  as  they  got  fairly  started? 

3.  What  did  the  disciples  do  in  their  terror? 

4.  What  country  lay  upon  the  other  side  ? 

5.  Who  were  the  first  persons  that  they  saw? 

6.  What  were  their  names? 

7.  What  happened  after  Jesus  had  cured  them? 

8.  What  request  did  the  citizens  make  of  Jesus  ? 

9.  Why  did  they  wish  him  to  go  away? 

10.  What  did  the  man  who  had  been  cured  ask  to  do? 

ri.  Why  did  not  Jesus  grant  this  request? 

12.  Why  could  he  not  preach  in  that  country? 


XIII.     Days  of  Happiness. 

Matthew  IV.  23-25;  Mark  I.  35-39. 

The  time  passed  very  rapidly  with  Jesus  during  this  period 
of  his  life.  He  was  surrounded  by  friends  who  not  only  loved 
him,  but  looked  up  to  him,  calling  him  their  leader  and  their 
master.  He  was  eagerly  welcomed  everywhere  he  went,  and 
his  words  were  received  with  quiet,  grateful  respect.  People 
visited  him  constantly  cither  to  ask  questions  or  to  be  helped 
in  some  illness  or  malady  by  his  wonderful  power. 

Most  of  all,  Jesus  himself  took  an  intense  pleasure  in  his 
work.  He  was  doing  the  thing  he  was  best  fitted  to  do.  He 
felt  that  he  was  working  at  just  the  task  God  wanted  him  to 
adopt.  He  threw  himself  heart  and  soul  into  his  duties,  with 
a  joyousness  and  an  earnestness  that  made  it  seem  not  at  all 
like  work. 

This,  of  course,  was  the  principal  secret  of  his  happiness. 

To  be  sure,  there  were  times  when  he  got  very  much  dis- 
couraged. No  one  seemed  to  understand  him  sometimes,  not 
even  his  disciples,  who  wxre  his  nearest  and  dearest  friends. 
People  were  apt  to  judge  him  by  themselves  and  to  think  him 
just  as  self-seeking  and  greedy  in  all  he  did  or  tried  as  they 
themselves  were.  They  seemed  to  be  unable  to  understand 
that  he  was  w^orking  from  the  noblest  and  most  unselfish  of 
motives;  and,  whenever  Jesus  saw  this,  it  made  him  very  un- 
happy. But,  w-hen  these  times  of  discouragement  came,  he 
found  a  safe  and  certain  remedy  in  his  constant  feeling  of 
companionship  with  God. 

Jesus  knew  perfectly  well  that,  however  grossly  his  fellow- 
men  might  misjudge  him,  his  Heavenly  Father  knew  him  as 
he  really  was,  and  loved  him  and  blessed  him  as  he  really  de- 
served. So,  when  the  discouragement  came,  he  would  slip 
away  from  the  multitudes  who  tired  him  with  their  dreary, 
stupid  questions,  and  go  out  to  some  lonely  hillside,  away 
from  ever}  body,  and  there  he  would  spend  a  quiet  hour  alone, 
praying  to  God. 


26 

When  he  came  back,  he  would  be  prepared  to  take  up  the 
work  again,  being  strengthened  with  an  inner  serenity  which 
the  affairs  of  the  world  could  not  destroy.  Such  trying  times, 
however,  were  infrequent.  The  long  golden  days  ghded  rap- 
idly by,  filled  full  of  work  and  hope.  It  was  the  happiest  time 
in  all  his  life,  being  made  so  by  his  own  devotion  and  fidel- 
ity. 


1.  In  what  province  did  Jesus  do  most  of  his  work? 

2.  What  are  the  natural  boundaries  of  Gahlee  ? 

3.  How  large  a  region  is  it? 

4.  Wliere  is  the  country  of  Syria? 

5.  What  kinds  of  sufferers  were  brought  to  him? 

6.  Where  was  Decapolis? 

7.  What  are  the  names  given  to  the  region  beyond  Jordan? 

8.  Where  did  he  go  a  great  while  before  day? 

9.  How  do  we  know  that  he  was  sometimes  misunderstood? 

10.  What  was  his  great  source  of  strength  ? 

11.  Was  he  welcomed  and  heard  in  every  town  that  he  yisited? 

12.  What  was  the  real  basis  of  his  happiness? 


XIV.    Becoming   Famous. 

Mark  I.  32-34,   II.  1-12;  Luke  IV.  42-44.. 

Thcv  had  no  telegraph  or  telephone  or  morning  paper  in 
those  days,  not  even  a  j)ost-ofl"ice  department.  When  a  man 
in  Babylon  wanted  to  send  a  letter  to  his  brother  in  Jerusalem, 
he  wrote  it  on  a  piece  of  pap\  rus  or  parchment,  and  then  waited 
until  some  caravan  of  merchants  should  start  from  Babvlon 
to  go  west.  Then  he  would  give  it  to  some  friend  in  the  car- 
avan, asking  him  to  forward  it  to  Jerusalem.  This  friend 
would  take  it  as  near  to  Jerusalem  as  he  was  going,  and  then 
give  it  to  some  one  who,  he  knew,  was  going  still  nearer.  In 
this  way,  after  weeks  and  weeks  of  travel,  passing  through 
half  a  dozen  hands  perhaps,  the  letter  would  finalh-  reach 
Its  destination.  Of  course,  all  news  had  to  travel  in  the  same 
deliberate  fashion. 

So,  you  see,  it  took  some  little  time  for  the  news  of  Jesus 
and  his  wonderful  preaching,  and  still  more  wonderful  powers, 
to  reach  the  more  distant  parts  of  the  country.  However, 
Capernaum  was  a  favored  town,  because  it  was  right  near  a 
great  caravan  trail,  and  could  receive  news  and  send  news 
much  more  quickly  than  many  other  little  villages.  So  this 
is  how  Jesus  gradually  grew  to  be  famous. 

A  caravan  would  halt  at  Nazareth,  right  near  by,  for  the 
night,  having  come  down  from  Damascus.  Some  one  in  the 
caravan  would  strike  up  an  acquaintance  with  the  citizen  who 
sold  him  wine  or  flour  for  his  supper,  and  would  ask  the  news. 
The  citizen  would  say,  Well,  there  is  a  man  in  Capernaum 
who  is  preaching  astonishing  things  about  the  Messiah  and 
the  kingdom  of  God,  and  he  has  a  wonderful  power  over  sick 
people,  so  that  he  can  cure  them.  And  some  say  that  he  even 
stopped  a  squall  one  day  on  the  Lake  of  Gennesaret.  The 
merchant,  of  course,  would  want  to  know  all  the  details. 

The  next  night  perhaps  the  caravan  would  halt  in  Cassarea, 
and  the  night  after  that  in  Joppa,  and  the  night  after  that  in 
Azotus,  and  in  each  place  the  merchant  would  tell  all  the  storv 


28 

he  had  heard  in  Nazareth  about  the  remarkable  man  in  Caper- 
naum, and  each  time  the  story  would  be  a  little  bigger. 

And  then  perhaps  another  caravan  would  come  into  Naz- 
areth, bound  from  Egypt  to  Antioch,  and  would  hear  the  same 
story,  and  would  proceed  to  scatter  it  along  the  road  to  the 
north,  just  as  the  first  -caravan  had  scattered  it  along  to  the 
south.  In  these  ways,  after  three  or  four  months,  Jesus  be- 
came quite  a  famous  man.  People  came  even  from  Tyre  and 
Sidon  to  see  him.  They  were  all  kinds  of  people, — Romans, 
Greeks,  Canaanitcs,  and  Syrians;  but  he  treated  them  all 
alike,  and  did  his  best  to  cure  their  ailments  and  to  persuade 
and  encourage  them  to  a  better  and  purer  way  of  living. 


1.  Where  is  Babylon? 

2.  What  is  a  caravan? 

3.  Can  you  find  on  the  map  the  great  caravan,  trail  that  ran  through  the 

country  ? 

4.  Where  are  Caesarea,  Joppa,  and  Azotus? 

5.  Where  is  Antioch? 

6.  Wliere  are  Tyre  and  Sidon  ? 

7.  Who  were  the  Canaanites? 

8.  How  did  people  send  letters  in  those  days  ? 

9.  What  was  the  principal  reason  for  Christ's  becoming  famous  ? 

10.  How  was  he  interrupted  one  day  as  he  was  preaching  in  a  house  in 

Capernaum? 

11.  How  did  the  sick  man  enter  the  house? 

12.  What  were  the  first  words  that  Christ  spoke  to  him? 


XV.     Hints  and  Suspicions. 

Matthew  VIII.  1-4,  IX.  30-31,  XII.  15  16;    Mark  III.  7-12,  V.  43, 
VII.  36,  VIII.  26. 

Jesus  began  to  find  that  this  rc})utation  which  he  was 
gaining  among  the  people  of  Galilee  had  its  embarrassing  side. 
Not  only  was  he  deprived  of  the  freedom  and  the  privacy 
which  he  formerly  enjoyed,  but  he  was  also  placed  in  a  some- 
what false  position  by  the  respect  and  the  adulation  he  re- 
ceived. 

You  remember  that  Jesus,  when  he  began  his  work  of  preach- 
ing, had  no  other  idea  than  to  warn  people  that  the  Messiah 
would  come  \ery  soon,  and  to  tell  them  how  to  get  ready  for 
him.  The  thought  had  never  as  yet  entered  his  mind  that 
he  himself  might  be  the  Messiah.  He  considered  himself 
simply  a  forerunner  of  his,  like  John.  But  the  time  was 
approaching  for  the  dawning  of  the  truth.  When  John  first 
began  to  preach,  he  showed  such  power  and  earnestness  that 
the  people  who  heard  him  began  to  wonder  if  he  might  not 
actually  be  the  Messiah.  They  came  and  asked  him  "whether 
haply  he  were  the  Christ";  and  John  always  answered  most 
decidedly  that  he  was  not. 

Now  the  same  thing  began  to  happen  to  Jesus.  When  the 
people  heard  him  preach  and  witnessed  his  cures,  they  at  once 
jumped  to  the  conclusion,  in  their  eagerness,  that  this  remark- 
able man  must  be  the  Messiah.  Just  hear  how  he  talks! 
they  said.  See  how  the  people  flock  to  him!  See  what  he 
can  do  for  sick  people  simply  by  laying  his  hands  on  them! 
Surely,  this  man  is  the  Messiah! 

It  shows  how  eager  everybody  w^as  to  have  their  Christ 
come.  They  were  constantly  on  the  watch,  and  anybody  who 
seemed  to  possess  extraordinary  power  was  at  once  suspected. 
When  these  hints  and  suspicions  were  dropped  into  Jesus' 
ears,  as  they  undoubtedly  were  sooner  or  later,  he  did  not 
openly  deny  them,  because  he  himself  was  not  perfectly  sure. 
These  very  hints  and  suspicions  of  the  people  were  perhaps 


30 

what  first  caused  him  to  ask  seriously:  Am  I  the  Messiah? 
Am  I  the  Christ  whom  the  whole  nation  is  expecting?  So 
while  he  could  not  exactly  deny  the  hints  of  his  friends,  still 
he  resolved  to  give  them  as  little  cause  as  possible  for  sus- 
pecting such  things  about  him. 

He  did  not  want  to  be  pressed  by  their  importuning,  or 
carried  away  by  their  eagerness.  He  must  have  lots  of  time 
to  think  it  over  by  himself.  So  thereafter,  whenever  he  cured 
anybody,  he  mxade  him  promise  to  tell  not  a  soul.  After  heal- 
ing the  two  blind  men,  he  said.  See  that  no  man  know  it;  and 
again,  after  curing  a  large  number,  he  charged  them  that  they 
should  not  make  him  known.  Jesus  did  not  want  to  be  talked 
about.  He  felt  the  need  of  time  and  privacy  to  think  out  the 
great  problem  which  his  friends'  ready  suspicions  had  hinted 
to  him. 


1.  What  great  leader  were  the  people  expecting  at  that  time? 

2.  How  did  they  believe  he  would  come? 

3.  How  had  John  the  Baptist  excited  their  suspicion  ? 

4.  What  did  they  begin  to  think  when  they  saw  Jesus  performing  his 

marvelous  works? 

5.  Among  whom  did  these  suspicions  first  arise? 

6.  How  did  Jesus  receive  these  suspicions? 

7.  What  was  leprosy? 

8.  Why  did  Jesus  charge  those  whom  he  cured  to  tell  no  man  ? 

9.  Why  did  the  Pharisees  want  to  destroy  him  ? 

10.  Did  these  people  keep  their  promise  to  him? 

11.  What  kind  of  a  Messiah  did  the  Pharisees  want? 

12.  How  would  the  Pharisees  treat  him  if  he  should  claim  to  be  the  Messiah  ? 


XVI.    A  Secret  Problem. 
Matthew  XIV.  22-23;  Luke  V.  12-16,  X.  21-24. 

This  hint  which  had  been  dropped  into  Jesus'  mind  by  his 
eager  followers,  llial  perhaps  he  himself  was  the  Messiah, 
was  destined  to  play  a  tremendous  part  in  his  life.  He  could 
not  altogether  put  the  thought  away  from  him.  There  may 
have  been  moments  when  he  said  to  himself:  No,  it  cannot 
be  possible  that  I  am  the  one  whom  God  has  chosen.  Am  I 
strong  and  good  enough  to  do  so  great  a  work  ? 

But  there  were  other  moments  when  the  hint  came  to  him 
with  growing  persistence.  It  gradually  grew  from  being  a 
mere  fancy,  a  suggestion  of  others,  into  a  really  serious  pos- 
sibility. Might  he  not,  after  all,  be  the  very  man  whom  God 
had  selected  to  be  His  Messiah?  He  had  to  confess  that  in 
some  ways  he  was  well  fitted  for  the  task.  He  saw  what  the 
people  needed,  a  better  and  purer  religion,  and  he  knew  that 
he  could  give  them  that.  He  saw  that  he  had  a  great  power 
over  them,  that  they  would  follow  him  and  obey  him,  and  he 
was  sure  he  could  lead  them  into  truer  ways  of  life. 

When  he  allowed  himself  to  think  thus,  he  was  almost  con- 
vinced that  the  suspicions  of  his  friends  must  be  correct,  and 
that  he  really  must  be  God's  Messiah.  And,  then,  back  would 
come  the  doubts  and  misgivings.  Most  of  all,  he  had  to 
tremble  at  what  he  knew  might  very  likely  be  his  fate,  if  once 
he  allowed  himself  to  be  called  the  Messiah.  He  knew  that 
the  powerful  men  of  the  nation  expected  a  Messiah  who  would 
come  with  pomp  and  glory.  They  would  not  believe  in  any 
Messiah  whose  only  claim  to  the  office  lay  in  being  spiritually- 
minded,  and  who  in  outward  showing  was  humble  and  lowly, 
as  he  would  be.  They  would  call  such  a  man  an  impostor, 
and  would  first  ridicule  him,  and  then  they  would  get  angry, 
and  very  likely  kill  him  for  blasphemy. 

Jesus  saw  that  this  might  be  his  fate  if  he  declared  himself 
the  Messiah,  so  he  faced  this  hard  problem,  and  spent  all  his 
thought  and   prayer  in   trying  to  decide  it.     He  would  not 


32 

discuss  it  openly.  He  would  not  allow  his  disciples  even  to 
mention  the  matter.  It  was  a  secret  problem,  which  he  alone 
must  decide.  The  happiness  and  the  brightness  of  his  former 
days  gave  place  now  to  a  sober  and  thoughtful  air,  for  Jesus 
was  laboring  with  the  gravest  question  of  his  life. 

This  is  what  he  kept  asking  himself:  "Does  God  intend  me 
to  be  only  a  humble  preacher,  sent  to  prepare  the  way  for  the 
Messiah,  or  is  it  His  intention  that  I  myself  shall  be  that  very 
Messiah  who  must  lead  the  nation  to  a  truer  worship  and  a 
purer  life?"  It  did  not  make  the  problem  any  easier  to  know 
that  in  all  probability  his  life  depended  upon  the  answer. 


1.  What  secret  problem  was  Jesus  harboring  in  his  mind  at  this  time? 

2.  Do  you  think  it  was  an  easy  problem  to  decide? 

3.  How  would  his  own  fate  depend  upon  his  decision  ? 

4.  How  would  the  fate  of  his  disciples  depend  upon  his  decision  ? 

5.  Did  he  allow  anybody  to  influence  him  in  deciding  this  problem? 

6.  Was  it  easy  for  him  to  be  alone  ? 

7.  How  did  he  secure  for  himself  occasional  moments  of  solitude  ? 

8.  How  did  he  use  these  moments  ? 

9.  Who  was  his  only  counsellor  during  this  period  of  doubt? 

10.  Did  the  disciples  understand  all  that  was  passing  through  their  Master's 

mind? 

11.  How  long  did  this  period  of  indecision  last? 

12.  In  what  ways  did  he  find  himself  fitted  to  be  the  Messiah? 


XVII.    Messengers  from  John. 

Mattukw  XI.  2-ig;    LiKi:  \'II.  iS-23. 

One  day,  right  in  the  midst  of  this  torturing  uncertainty, 
there  came  to  Jesus  several  messengers  from  his  friend  John. 
Since  Jesus  began  his  work,  John  had  been  in  j)rison;  but 
before  that  he  had  been  preaching  in  Southern  Palestine,  just 
as  Jesus  was  now  preaching  in  Galilee.  He  had  been  arrested 
by  Herod  and  cast  into  prison  because  in  one  of  his  sermons 
he  had  denounced  Herod  for  marrying  his  own  brother's  wife. 

While  he  lay  in  prison  he  heard  the  news  that  this  man, 
Jesus,  whom  he  had  baptized  months  before  in  the  Jordan 
River,  was  attracting  great  attention  in  Galilee  by  his  remark- 
able preaching  and  was  performing  wonderful  cures  among 
the  sick,  and  in  general  was  creating  a  great  deal  of  excitement. 

At  once  John  began  to  think  just  what  Jesus'  friends  were 
beginning  to  think,  that  this  man  might  perhaps  be  the  Messiah. 
So,  being  very  eager  to  know,  he  sent  some  of  his  disciples  as 
messengers  to  Jesus,  to  ask  him  frankly.  Art  thou  he  that 
should  come,  or  look  we  for  another?  Or,  in  other  words, 
Are  you  the  Messiah  whom  we  are  expecting,  or  must  we  still 
wait? 

Now  in  the  answer  which  Jesus  gave  to  these  messengers 
we  can  see  something  of  the  doubt  which  was  troubling  him. 
He  did  not  answer  either  Yes  or  No,  because  he  had  not  yet 
decided.  But  he  told  the  messengers  to  go  back  and  give 
John  the  facts, — how  the  blind  receive  their  sight  and  how  the 
lame  are  made  to  walk,  and  how  the  lepers  are  cleansed  and 
how  the  common  people  have  good  tidings  preached  to  them, 
all  by  means  of  his  strange  power.  Tell  John  these  things, 
we  seem  to  hear  Jesus  say,  and  let  him  decide  for  himself 
whether  I,  who  do  these  things,  am  the  Messiah  or  not. 

So  the  messengers  returned  to  their  master  in  prison,  and 
Jesus  was  left  to  ponder,  still  undecided,  over  his  problem. 
The  fact  that  John  himself,  his  teacher  and  friend,  in  whose 
judgment  he  placed  such  confidence,  really  gave  serious  thought 


34 

to  the  suspicion  that  he  might  be  the  Messiah,  had  the  effect 
of  strengthening  the  possibiHty  in  Jesus'  mind,  and  in  fact 
may  have  had  great  weight  in  his  final  decision. 


1.  Where  was  John  when  he  heard  about  Jesus? 

2.  How  had  he  come  to  be  put  in  such  a  place? 

3.  What  question  did  he  tell  his  disciples  to  ask  Jesus? 

4.  Whom  did  he  mean  by  the  words  "He  that  cometh"? 

5.  How  did  Jesus  answer  their  question? 

6.  What  does  this  answer  indicate  ? 

7.  What  do  you  think  Jesus  meant  by  Matthew  xi.  6? 

8.  From  what  Old  Testament  passage  is  this  answer  quoted? 

9.  To  what  kind  of  children  does  Jesus  refer  in  Matthew  xi.  17? 

10.  How  were  the  people  of  that  generation  like  these  children? 

11.  How  did  John's  question  influence  Jesus  himself? 

12.  What  did  Jesus  think  of  John? 


XVIII.     Making  Enemies. 

Matthew  IX.  10-13  ^^'^^  3-34,  XI 1.  q  14  ami  22-24,  XXII.   15  22; 
Mark  II.  15   17. 

Almost  everybody  has  encmic.'^.  Il  is  hardly  po.ssible  lo  be 
firm  and  decided  in  one's  convictions  wiihoul  attracting  the 
hostility  of  those  who  disagree  with  tliosc  convictions.  So  it 
was  with  Jesus.  We  arc  not  to  suppose  that  every  one  who 
heard  him  agreed  with  him  and  liked  him.  There  were  some 
who  disagreed  utterly  with  him,  and  who  at  first  opposed  or 
ridiculed  all  he  said  and  did,  and  w^ho  later  grew  to  hate  him 
and  fear  him. 

These  were  chiefly  the  men  known  as  "Scribes"  and  "Phari 
sees."  They  were  the  better  educated  men,  the  strong,  prom- 
inent class  in  the  nation.  They  disagreed  with  Jesus  when  he 
said  that  the  coming  Messiah  would  be  a  reformer  instead  of 
a  warrior.  They  believed  he  would  be  a  great  general,  who 
would  come  in  all  the  glory  and  splendor  of  military  j)omp, 
and  put  himself  at  the  head  of  their  armies,  and  with  the  help 
of  Jehovah  lead  them  in  glorious  victory  against  the  forces 
of  the  Roman  Empire. 

Of  course,  Jesus  could  not  believe  any  such  thing  as  this. 
He  said  that  the  Messiah  would  be  a  lowly  ])ro]:»het,  a  relig- 
ious teacher,  a  king  of  justice  and  goodness  and  love.  The 
Scribes  and  Pharisees  hated  him  for  saying  such  things.  First 
they  mocked  him  and  said  he  was  a  servant  of  the  de\il.  Then 
they  said  he  was  nothing  but  an  ignorant  carpenter.  Then 
they  pretended  to  be  shocked  at  his  blasphemy  and  irreverence. 

But  Jesus  continued  to  be  perfectly  fearless  and  honest  in 
his  conduct.  He  did  not  believe  it  w'as  God's  wish  that  the 
Sabbath,  for  instance,  should  be  observed  as  the  Scribes  and 
Pharisees  observed  it.  He  did  not  think  it  was  wrong  to  do 
good  deeds  on  the  Sabbath  day,  even  though  such  deeds  did 
have  the  appearance  of  work.  But  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees 
said  he  was  breaking  the  law  when  he  performed  his  cures  on 
the  Sabbath,  and  hated  him  all  the  more.     Tn  fact,  they  took 


36 

a  malicious  pleasure  in  watching  him,  and  in  picking  him  up 
in  matters  where  he  broke  the  law,  with  the  hope,  doubtless, 
that  some  day  they  might  catch  him  in  some  serious  offense 
and  have  him  arrested. 

Of  course,  this  hatred  of  theirs  towards  him  was  a  great  ob- 
stacle to  his  work,  and,'  moreover,  it  aroused  in  him  a  corre- 
sponding feeling  of  indignation  towards  them  for  their  hollow 
and  pretentious  righteousness.  Several  times  he  called  them 
"hypocrites"  and  "vipers."  But,  in  spite  of  it  all,  Jesus  went 
steadily  and  fearlessly  about  his  work.  They  might  show 
him  their  enmity,  but  they  could  not  frighten  him  or  turn  him 
from  what  he  considered  his  duty. 


1.  Who  were  Publicans? 

2.  How  were  they  regarded  by  people  ? 

3.  What  kind  of  people  did  Jesus  attract  to  himself? 

4.  What  did  the  Pharisees  say  when  they  saw  him  eating  with  these 

people  ? 

5.  Who  were  Scribes  and  Pharisees? 

6.  How  did  Jesus  reply  to  their  criticism  ? 

7.  Who  did  they  mean  by  the  son  of  David? 

8.  Who  was  Beelzebub? 

9.  How  did  the  Pharisees  try  to  overthrow  him  ? 

10.  What  sly  trap  did  they  set  for  him  in  Matthew  xxii.  17? 

11.  How  did  Jesus  outwit  them? 

12.  Can  you  think  of  any  other  great  man  who  made  enemies? 


XIX.     The  Fate  of  John  the  Baptist. 

Matthew  XIV.  1-12;  Mark  VI.  14-29. 

The  last  wc  saw  of  John  he  was  in  prison,  where  lie  harl  been 
put  because  he  criticised  King  Herod  for  marrying  his  brother's 
wife.  Herod  did  not  intend  to  kill  him,  in  fact  he  was  rather 
afraid  to.  But  the  wife  hated  him  with  her  whole  heart,  and 
was  determined  to  put  a  stop  to  his  fearless  and  troublesome 
honesty. 

One  day  Herod  had  a  birthday  j)arty  in  his  palace,  and  one 
of  the  features  of  the  party  was  a  dance  which  his  step-daughter 
Salome  performed.  It  was  a  graceful,  beautiful  dance,  and 
Herod  was  so  pleased  that  he  rashly  promised  Salome  any- 
thing she  should  ask  as  a  reward.  So  Salome  asked  her  mother 
what  she  should  choose,  and  her  mother  told  her  to  choose 
the  head  of  John  the  Baptist.  Of  course,  Salome  did  not  want 
such  a  fearful  thing,  but  her  mother  was  so  anxious  to  have 
John  beheaded  that  she  made  her  daughter  choose  that  for  a 
reward.     Herod  accordingly  had  John  beheaded  in  prison. 

Now  one  day,  some  time  after  this,  some  one  told  Herod 
of  the  strange,  wonderful  man  up  in  Galilee,  who  was  excit- 
ing such  comment  by  his  preaching  and  his  cures.  Herod's 
guilty  conscience  made  him  at  once  superstitious,  and  he  said, 
with  a  start:  This  man  is  no  other  than  John  the  Baptist, 
whom  I  killed.  He  is  risen  from  the  dead.  His  ghost  has 
come  back  to  haunt  me.  But  Jesus  in  the  mean  time  had 
been  told,  by  some  loyal  friends  of  John,  of  the  tragic  fate 
that  had  befallen  their  master. 

It  was  the  kind  of  news  that  would  very  naturall}'  add  to 
his  fears  and  anxieties.  He  and  John  were  very  much  alike 
in  thought  and  deed.  They  were  working  for  the  same  pur- 
pose. If  John  was  deemed  worthy  of  death,  might  it  not  fol- 
low that  he  himself  would  be  the  next  to  be  sought  out  and 
slain?  He  was  not  yet  ready  to  die.  He  had  not  settled  his 
problem,  and,  until  he  could  decide  that,  he  must  find  peace 
and  safety.     So,  when  Jesus  heard  the  new^s  of  John's  death, 


38 

he  quietly  entered  a  boat  with  his  disciples,  and  retreated  to 
the  other  side  of  the  lake,  where  he  could  be  secure  from  in- 
trusion and  disturbance  for  a  while. 


1.  What  did  Herod  think  when  he  heard  about  Jesus? 

2.  Who  were  the  old  prophets  of  Israel  ? 

3.  Why  had  Herod  imprisoned  John  ? 

4.  How  did  Herod  feel  towards  John  ? 

5.  How  did  Herod  celebrate  his  birthday? 

6.  What  was  his  step-daughter's  name,  and  how  did  she  please  Herod  ? 

7.  In  his  gratitude,  what  foolish  promise  did  Herod  make? 

8.  What  did  his  daughter  choose  for  her  reward  ? 
g.  Who  told  her  to  choose  this? 

10.  How  did  Herod  feel  about  granting  this  request? 

11.  Who  performed  the  burial  rites  for  John  the  Baptist? 

12.  Where  did  the  tragedy  occur? 


XX.    A  Fugitive. 

Matthew  XIV.  ij  and  22,  W.  21-jS;   Like  XIII.  31-33. 

Jesus  did  not  run  away  because  he  was  afraid.  His  brav- 
ery in  aflcr-days  proves  to  us  that  he  was  not  afraid  of  death 
in  it'^clf.  But  he  was  not  yet  ready  to  die.  He  had  not  yet 
decided  his  problem  one  way  or  the  other.  He  must  have 
more  time.  So,  in  order  to  get  this  time  and  escape  the  fear 
and  superstitious  curiosity  of  Herod,  which  might  lead  to  his 
arrest,  Jesus  felt  it  would  be  only  wise  to  retire  for  a  short 
time  from  public  view,  and  go  awa\'  to  some  distant  region, 
where  he  might  be  unmolested  until  things  blew  over  a  little. 

So  he  and  his  disciples  planned  a  long  walking  tour  to  the 
north.  First,  they  got  into  a  little  boat  (it  may  have  been 
Peter's  fishing-boat),  and  rowed  across  the  lake  to  a  town  called 
Bethsaida.  As  soon  as  they  landed,  people  recognized  Jesus, 
for,  you  remember,  he  had  been  across  the  lake  before.  They 
at  once  crowded  around  him  to  hear  what  he  would  say,  and 
they  brought  him  all  their  sick  friends  and  neighbors,  that 
he  might  heal  them.  He  stayed  in  that  region  some  days, 
visiting  the  various  little  towns  and  villages  around  there 
and  doing  all  the  good  he  could;  and  then  he  started  on  to 
other  places. 

By  easy  stages  he  soon  reached  the  region  around  the  great 
cities  of  Tyre  and  Sidon,  some  forty  miles  to  the  north.  Here 
he  was  out  of  Jewish  soil,  in  a  foreign  land.  The  people  about 
him  were  not  especially  interested  in  him,  because  they  were 
not  Jews,  but  Canaanitcs  and  Greeks  and  Phoenicians.  He 
cured  the  little  daughter  of  a  Canaanitish  woman,  but  for  the 
most  part  people  paid  no  attention  to  him. 

His  message  of  the  coming  Messiah  and  his  kingdom  of 
righteousness  did  not  appeal  to  their  foreign  minds.  Jesus 
felt  that  he  must  use  his  time  to  better  advantage,  so  after  a 
little  while  he  turned  south  again,  and  came  to  Bethsaida, 
where  he  cured  a  blind  man,  and  then,  making  a  great  cir- 
cle, he  struck  north  a  second  time,  to  visit  some  villages  at 


40 

Cassarea  Philippi.     It  was  at  Caesarea  Philippi  that  something 
happened  which  changed  the  whole  course  of  his  hfe. 


1.  In  what  danger  did  Jesus  find  himself  after  John's  death? 

2.  Who  warned  him  of  this  danger? 

3.  In  his  answer  what  term  of  contempt  did  he  apply  to  Herod  ? 

4.  Into  what  region  did  he  retire  ? 

5.  What  favor  did  the  Canaanitish  woman  ask  of  him  ? 

6.  Wnat  did  he  mean  by  his  first  answer  ? 

7.  What  did  he  mean  by  his  second  answer? 

8.  How  did  the  woman  finally  induce  him  to  help  her  ? 

9.  What  kind  of  people  lived  in  Tyre  and  Sidon  ? 

10.  Did  Jesus  withdraw  from  Galilee  because  he  was  afraid  ? 

11.  What  might  have  happened  if  he  had  stayed  there? 

12.  How  long  a  journey  might  this  have  been? 


XXI.     Deciding  the   Problem. 
Matthew  XVI.  13-20;  Mark  VIII.  27-32;  Lukk  IX.  18-21. 

We  must  imagine  Jesus  during  these  days,  pondering  over 
his  great  problem.  Whatever  he  ha{)])ened  to  be  doing,  that 
great  question  continually  beset  him,  Am  I  the  Christ  whom 
God  has  sent,  or  am  I  only  his  forerunner?  We  can  well 
imagine  how  the  cjuestion  tortured  him.  It  was  a  most  im- 
portant question  to  him,  and  a  great  deal  depended  on  how 
he  decided  it. 

In  the  first  place  it  meant,  possibly,  life  or  death  to  him. 
For,  if  he  should  declare  himself  the  Christ,  he  knew  the 
Pharisees,  who  expected  their  Christ  to  come  with  regal  pomp, 
would  ridicule  him,  call  him  "blasphemer,"  and  pcrha])s  put 
him  to  death.  In  the  second  place,  the  welfare  of  his  friends 
depended  on  his  decision.  They  were  loyal,  and  would  fol- 
low him,  whatever  he  did.  If  he  decided  rightly,  their  well- 
being  would  be  secured.  If  he  decided  wrongly,  he  would 
lead  them  into  unmerited  errors  and  disasters.  He  felt  that 
their  fortunes  were  in  his  hands,  and  this  feeling  made  the 
problem  ten  times  more  serious. 

Now  all  these  arguments  had  been  weighed  by  Jesus  for 
some  months,  and  he  had  at  last  pretty  nearly  come  to  the 
conclusion  that  he  was  the  long-expected  Messiah.  Every- 
thing seemed  to  prove  it.  It  looked  as  though  that  were  his 
especial  task.  He  had  not  yet  told  the  disciples  of  his  deci- 
sion, but  he  took  the  very  next  opportunity  of  doing  so.  When 
they  got  to  the  country  around  Caesarea  Philippi,  Jesus  took 
his  disciples  aside  to  a  quiet,  shady  place,  and  said,  I  have 
something  to  talk  about.     Who  do  men  say  I  am? 

Ever)'body  was  perfectly  still  for  a  moment,  they  were  so 
astonished  at  the  question.  Then  they  began  to  answer  bash- 
fully: Some  say  you  arc  John  the  Baptist  come  to  life  again. 
Some  say  you  are  Elijah,  or  Jeremiah,  or  one  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament prophets.  Jesus,  with  a  quiet  little  smile,  asked  them. 
But  who  do  you  say  that  I  am  ?    Again  there  came  a  startled 


42 

pause,  which  no  one  dared  to  break.  But  all  at  once  Peter, 
the  impulsive  one,  sprang  to  his  feet,  and  cried  out  in  a  ring- 
ing voice,  Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  son  of  the  living  God! 

Jesus  turned  to  him,  and  blessed  him  for  his  honesty  and 
sympathetic  insight,  and  from  that  moment  the  great  prob- 
lem of  his  life  was  decided.  He  was  no  longer  Jesus  of  Naza- 
reth, a  prophet  and  preacher  of  strange  tidings :  he  was  thence- 
forth, in  his  own  honest  belief,  Jesus  Christ,  the  Messiah  of 
God,  with  a  Messiah's  work  to  do. 


1.  Where  was  Caesarea  Philippi? 

2.  What  startling  question  did  Jesus  ask  his  disciples? 

3.  To  whom  does  he  refer  by  the  name  Son  of  Man  ? 

4.  How  did  they  answer  the  question  ? 

5.  How  did  he  ask  the  question  a  second  time? 

6.  Which  one  of  the  disciples  answered  him  ? 

7.  How  do  you  think  he  acted  when  he  gave  this  answer? 

8.  How  did  Jesus  receive  the  answer? 

9.  What  may  we  infer  from  the  words  "Flesh  and  blood  hath  not  revealed 

it  unto  thee"? 

10.  What  prophecy  as  to  his  own  fate  did  Jesus  at  once  make  ? 

11.  How  could  Jesus  foresee  this  fate? 

12.  Why  did  Jesus  rebuke  Peter  so  sharply? 


XXII.     A  Rift  of  Light. 
Matthew  XVII.  i-8,  14-21;  Mark  IX.  2-8;  Luke  IX.  28-36. 

As  soon  as  Jesus  had  decided  that  he  must  be  the  Christ, 
there  came  a  great  change  into  his  life.  Heretofore  he  ha<l 
been  only  a  foreninncr  of  the  Christ,  who.se  work  had  con 
sisted  in  preaching  to  the  people  and  preparing  them  for  the 
Messiah's  coming.  But  now  that  he  himself  was  the  Christ, 
he  must  add  to  all  this  work  and  teaching  the  task  of  actually 
establishing  his  kingdom. 

There  was  still  another  change  that  came  over  him  when  he 
decided  his  problem.  Before  that  day  in  Ca^sarea  Philippi, 
Jesus  had  been  a  haj)py,  earnest  teacher.  But  now  that  he 
was  the  Christ,  the  nation's  deHverer,  he  became  sober  and 
thoughtful,  as  though  awed  by  the  vast  responsibilities  of  his 
office.  Moreover,  he  knew  very  well  that  he  would  be  in  danger 
of  death  at  the  hands  of  the  Pharisees  and  Rabbis  in  Jeru- 
salem, because  he  dared  to  claim  that  he  was  the  Messiah  of 
God.  His  mind  was  full  of  dread  for  the  sufferings  he  would 
have  to  endure. 

If  it  seems  strange  to  us  that  he  should  have  dared  to  take 
this  great  office  in  view  of  its  dangers,  we  must  remember 
that  in  his  heart  there  was  something  stronger  than  fear, — 
his  stern  sense  of  obedience  to  duty.  This  sense  of  obedience, 
of  fidelity  to  conscience,  compelled  him  to  make  that  dangerous 
choice,  even  though  he  knew  its  dangers.  And  we  must  sup- 
pose that  beneath  all  his  fears  there  lived  a  deep  and  radiant 
serenity  which  not  even  the  prospect  of  death  could  destroy, 
but  which  came  to  him  as  the  natural  flower  of  his  obedience 
to  God. 

One  time,  a  few  days  after  the  decision  was  made,  this  seren- 
ity came  to  the  surface.  It  was  upon  a  hilltop,  whither  he  had 
gone  with  three  of  his  friends.  As  he  sat  there,  thinking  over 
his  actions  and  his  future,  he  might  have  communed  thus  with 
himself:  I  have  decided  that  I  am  the  Christ.  I  have  taken 
that  office  because  it  is  my  plain  dut}-.     The  Pharisees  will 


44 

probably  kill  me  for  calling  myself  Christ,  but  they  cannot  rob 
me  of  my  joy  in  doing  what  I  know  I  ought  to  do.  I  have 
obeyed  God  in  the  face  of  death,  and  my  reward  lies  in  this 
gratified  conscience.  And  then  this  feeling  of  serene  satis- 
faction took  such  hold  upon  him  that,  as  the  story  says,  he  was 
transfigured  with  happiness.  His  face  shone  as  the  sun,  and 
God's  own  voice  spoke  to  him,- — This  is  my  beloved  son,  in 
whom  I  am  well  pleased. 

We  have  a  proverb  which  says  that  "duty  performed  is  a 
rainbow  in  the  soul."  It  was  some  such  rainbow  as  this  that 
filled  the  soul  of  Jesus  with  a  rift  of  heavenly  light.  Come 
what  might,  his  conscience  was  at  rest.  With  a  gratified  con- 
science a  man  can  bear  almost  an}-  sorrow. 


1.  Where  did  Jesus  go  six  days  after  the  scene  at  Ca?sarea  Philippi? 

2.  Which  disciples  did  he  take  with  him? 

3.  What  especial  relation  did  these  disciples  enjoy  towards  Jesus  ? 

4.  What  is  it  to  be  transfigured  ? 

5.  How  did  this  transfiguralion  show  itself  in  Jesus? 

6.  What  suggestion  did  Peter  make  ? 

7.  What  did  the  wonderful  voice  say  to  them  ? 

8.  What  do  you  think  this  transfiguration  means  ? 

g.  Upon  what  other  occasion  did  a  heavenly  voice  speak  to  him? 

10.  What  sad  scene  did  they  find  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain? 

11.  Why  could  not  the  disciples  cure  the  demoniac? 

12.  Did  Jesus  really  mean  that  they  could  remove  mountains  by  faith? 


XXIII.    The  First  Temptation. 

Matthew  IV.  1-7.  • 

No  man  can  find  himself  suddenly  gifted  with  a  strange  new 
power  without  at  once  being  tempted  to  misuse  that  power. 
It  was  so  with  Jesus.  After  the  memorable  scene  in  Caesarea 
Philippi,  where  he  delinitely  took  upon  himself  the  name  and 
the  work  of  God's  Messiah,  there  came  to  him  a  realization  of 
the  great  power  which  he  possessed,  and  which  he  could  exer- 
cise upon  the  humble  people  about  him. 

His  intiuence  over  them  was  enormous.  He  could  make 
them  believe  just  what  he  wanted  them  to  believe,  and  he 
could  make  them  do  just  what  he  wanted  them  to  do.  He  saw 
clearly  that  they  trusted  him  entirely,  and  that  whatsoever  he 
said  was  law  to  them.  It  was  perfectly  natural  that  he  should 
at  once  be  tempted  to  abuse  this  power;  and  the  story  of  his 
temptations  and  of  how  he  resisted  them  is  one  of  the  noblest 
stories  in  the  Gospels. 

We  have  it  told  to  us  in  personal  characters  and  concrete 
forms,  as  though  the  spirit's  darkness  and  perplexity  in  which 
he  struggled  were  a  real  wilderness  and  as  though  the  trouble- 
some voice  which  whispered  tempting  words  in  his  heart  were 
the  voice  of  a  real  evil  person.  There  were  three  ways  in 
which  this  voice  tempted  him  to  abuse  his  power.  They  are 
called  the  Three  Temptations. 

The  first  temptation  was  that  he  should  use  his  wonderful 
power,  not  so  much  for  other  people's  benefit  as  for  his  own; 
that  by  it  he  should  secure  for  himself  riches  and  ease  and 
comfort.  This  temptation  Jesus  resisted  with  comparative 
ease.  He  was  too  generous  to  be  really  attracted  by  it.  He 
did  not  want  personal  wealth  and  ease  nearly  so  much  as  he 
wanted  to  help  others  and  have  others  enjoy  a  richer  and  truer 
and  fuller  measure  of  life  through  his  help  and  through  his  self- 
denial. 

1.  WTiere  did  the  Spirit  lead  Jesus? 

2.  WTiat  was  the  purpose  of  this  errand? 


46 

3-  How  long  did  he  fast? 

4.  What  does  the  numeral  40  signify  ? 

5.  What  did  the  tempter  suggest  that  he  do  to  the  stones? 

6.  How  did  Jesus  answer  ? 

7.  After  what  event  did  this  temptation  come,  according  to  the  Gospels? 

8.  Was  it  into  a  real  wilderness  that  he  went? 

9.  Was  it  a  real  Satan  who  spoke  to  him  ? 

10.  What  great  power  had  he  just  received  ? 

11.  For  what  purpose  had  this  power  been  given  him? 

12.  Of  what  sin  would  he  have  been  guilty  if  he  had  used  this  power  for 

another  purpose? 


XXIV.     The  Second  Temptation,    'nrirw 

Luke  IV.  1-13;  Matthew  Xll.  38. 


We  have  seen  that  it  is  very  natural  for  a  man  to  be  tempted 
to  misuse  his  power  as  soon  as  he  is  gi\en  power.  Many  a 
man  has  been  an  upright  private  citizen,  but  when  he  has  been 
elected  to  some  pohtical  oflice  which  gave  him  a  certain  amount 
of  power,  and  has  enabled  him  to  influence  the  Hves  of  others, 
he  has  yielded  to  the  temptation  to  use  this  new  power  to  his 
own  profit,  to  make  his  own  private  fortune  by  it,  or  to  secure 
his  own  seliish  ambition  by  it.  It  is  a  comm.on  temptation, 
and  perhaps  we  know  actual  people  who  have  fallen  into  it. 

Jesus  readily  resisted  this  temptation,  but  the  second  tempta- 
tion that  came  to  him  he  found  much  harder  to  resist.  We 
have  seen  that  his  great  aim  in  life  was  to  help  his  fellow-men. 
We  have  seen  that  he  had  a  great  influence  over  the  common 
people,  and  could  help  them  wonderfully  because  they  were 
ready  to  believe  all  he  said.  The  great  difliculty  in  his  way 
was  that  the  more  important  people  in  the  nation,  the  Scribes 
and  Priests  and  Pharisees,  would  not  allow  his  claim  of  being 
the  Christ  and  would  not  believe  on  him. 

If  only  he  could  do  something  that  would  win  them  over  to 
his  side,  his  work  of  establishing  a  great  Jewish  kingdom  of 
heaven  would  become  very  much  easier  and  simpler.  He 
needed  their  recognition.  So  the  voice  whispered  to  him  to 
employ  his  wonderful  power  in  doing  something  so  marvelous 
that  they  would  at  once  give  him  their  recognition.  Cast  your- 
self down  from  the  pinnacle  of  the  temple,  said  the  voice. 
You  will  sufTer  no  hurt,  for  you  are  God's  Christ.  And  this 
will  seem  so  wonderful  that  everybody  will  believe  on  you,  and 
recognize  you  as  the  Christ. 

This  was  a  hard  temptation  for  Christ  to  overcome,  for  it 
seemed  to  promise  him  real  help  in  doing  his  work.  But  he 
saw  that  it  would  not  do  to  win  recognition  in  such  cheap  ways. 
Good  work  must  be  done  in  good  ways,  and  his  recognition 
with  the  people,  in  order  to  be  worth  anything  to  him  or  to  them, 


48 

must  come  through  their  honest  appreciation  of  his  true  worth, 
and  not  through  miracle  or  sign.  So,  after  a  severe  conflict, 
he  put  down  this  temptation  also. 


1.  Which  is  the  second  temptation  in  the  Matthew  story? 

2.  Which  temptation  is  this  in  the  Luke  story? 

3.  Why  did  Satan  take  him  to  Jerusalem  ? 

4.  How  many  temples  were  there  in  the  country  ? 

5.  How  high  was  the  pinnacle  of  the  temple? 

6.  What  did  Satan  say  would  happen  if  Jesus  cast  himself  down  ? 

7.  From  what  Old  Testament  books  does  Satan  quote  in  Luke  iv.  10 

and  II? 

8.  Did  Jesus  really  believe  that  he  could  leap  from  this  pinnacle  without 

injury? 

9.  What  effect  would  this  have  upon  those  who  saw  him  ? 

10.  What  is  a  sign? 

11.  Why  did  the  Pharisees  want  him  to  give  them  a  sign? 

12.  Why  did  Jesus  resist  this  temptation? 


XXV.     The  Third  Temptation. 

Matthew  IV.  S-ii;   John  VI.  15. 

The  third  temptation  was  the  hardest  one  of  all,  because 
it  was  a  temptation  to  do  nothing  selfish  or  evil,  but  to  do  good. 
The  voice  said  to  him:  You  want  to  help  your  pcoj^le,  and 
teach  them  to  live  true  and  hai)py  lives?  Very  well.  They 
like  you  and  believe  in  you.  You  have  a  great  inlhience  over 
them.  If  you  will  only  consent,  they  are  ready  and  anxious 
to  take  you  and  make  you  their  king.  You  may  rule  them  from 
your  throne,  and  they  will  fight  your  battles  and  conquer  your 
enemies,  and  make  you  all  i:)0werful. 

And  then,  as  king  of  the  peoi:)le,  just  think  of  the  vast  amount 
of  good  you  can  do  them.  You  can  make  good  laws,  and  put 
down  all  corrupt  practices,  and  remedy  all  the  social  evils  and 
injustices,  and  rule  them  in  equity  and  righteousness,  and  there 
shall  be  no  more  sin  or  cruelty  or  sorrow  or  oppression  in  all 
the  land;  and  all  your  subjects  will  love  you  and  ble.ss  your 
name. 

We  can  easily  understand  how  sorely  this  temptation  ap- 
pealed to  Christ  to  use  his  power  to  make  himself  king,  and 
then  to  inaugurate  a  model  kingdom  upon  earth.  But,  after 
a  long,  bitter  fight,  he  resisted  this  temptation  also,  and  for 
this  reason:  he  was  not  satisfied  to  do  a  certain  amount  of 
real  good  to  a  certain  number  of  people. 

He  wanted  to  do  all  the  good  he  possibly  could  to  as  many 
people  as  he  could  possibly  reach.  If  he  should  allow  himself 
to  be  made  a  king,  he  could  do  a  certain  amount  of  immediate 
and  temporary  good  to  a  certain  number  of  people. 

But  something  told  him,  perhaps,  that,  if  only  he  would  go 
on  his  true  way,  and  preach  his  gospel,  and  sulTer  his  harsh 
death,  and  keep  himself  absolutely  true  to  the  pure  voice  of 
conscience  in  his  heart,  the  whole  world  would  in  time  learn 
to  honor  him  and  love  him,  and  accept  him  as  the  type  and 
example  of  true  living,  and  that  thus  his  influence  for  good 


so 

would  become  infinitely  greater  and  more  lasting,  and  would 
spread  over  all  nations  and  live  through  all  ages. 


1.  Where  did  Satan  take  him  for  the  last  temptation? 

2.  What  did  Satan  show  him  from  that  place? 

3.  What  offer  did  Satan  make  him  ? 

4.  How  did  Jesus  reply? 

5.  Could  Jesus  really  have  been  king  if  he  wanted  to  be? 

6.  What  good  might  he   have  done   if  he   had  allowed  himself  to  be- 

come a  king? 

7.  How  extensive  do  you  think  his  kingdom  would  have  been  ? 

8.  Would  there  have  been  anything  really  sinful  in  yielding  to  this  tempta- 

tion? 

9.  Why  do  you  suppose  he  resisted? 

10.  Why  was  this  the  hardest  temptation  of  all  ? 

11.  How  extensive  is  his  influence  to-day? 

12.  What  is  the  reason  of  this  great  extent  of  his  influence? 


XXVI.     Starting  for  Jerusalem. 

Matthew  XVII.  22-23,  -'^-'*^-  17-1^);  Mark  IX.  30-37. 

Just  how  long  these  various  temptations  lasted  we  are  unable 
to  say.  They  were  probably  not  very  definite  either  in  time 
or  place,  but  they  occurred  to  him  at  odd  times  and  places 
probably  over  and  over  again.  Jesus  nobly  resisted  them  all, 
and  resolved  to  keep  himself  absolutely  true  to  the  calm, 
in.sistcnt  voice  of  conscience  which  spoke  its  divine  i)rompt- 
ings  in  his  heart.  'Sometimes  perhaps  he  wavered  and  mis- 
trusted himself,  but  in  the  end  his  resolution  grew  stronger 
and  grander. 

He  would  be  the  Christ,  he  would  do  the  work  of  the  Christ, 
he  would  obey  God  with  all  his  fidelity,  even  though  it  led 
him  into  sorrow  and  death.  As  the  Christ  of  God,  the  first 
thing  to  do  was  to  go  at  once  to  Jerusalem,  and  proclaim  him- 
self the  Messiah  of  God  in  the  nation's  capital.  If  the  people 
believed  him  and  supported  him,  then  there  would  be  estab- 
lished the  kingdom  of  the  noble  and  true,  who  would  live 
together  in  peace  and  righteousness  all  their  days.  But  if 
the  people  did  not  believe  in  him,  but  mocked  him  and  killed 
him,  as  he  more  than  half  expected  them  to  do,  why,  he  could 
only  suffer  as  quietly  and  bravely  as  possible. 

No  matter  what  the  people  did,  he  must  do  his  work  faith- 
fully and  completely.  Then,  whatever  happened,  it  would 
not  be  through  any  fault  of  his.  So  the  little  company  went 
at  once  to  Galilee,  to  the  home  in  Capernaum,  and  after  a  short 
stay  there,  to  make  some  final  preparations  perhaps,  they 
started  out  on  their  journey  of  seventy-five  or  eighty  miles  for 
the  great  city  of  Jerusalem. 

What  deep  emotions  must  have  passed  through  Jesus'  mind 
as  he  took  his  last  look  at  the  little  town  where  he  had  lived, 
— at  the  gently  swelling  hillsides  and  green  pastures  where  he 
had  rambled  and  preached  and  prayed  and  spent  such  happy 
days,  at  the  beautiful  blue  lake  which  he  hardly  expected  to 
see  again!    How  hard  it  must  have  been!     But  he  was  a  ser- 


52 

vant  of  God.  He  was  driven  by  his  conscience.  And,  hard  as 
it  was,  it  would  be  infinitely  harder  for  him  to  be  false  to  his 
conscience  and  to  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  the  voice  of  duty.  So, 
bidding  a  last  good-bye  to  lake  and  hill  and  pasture,  he  reso- 
lutely set  his  back  to  the  little  Galilean  home,  and  started  for 
Jerusalem. 


1.  Why  was  it  necessary  for  Jesus  to  go  to  Jerusalem? 

2.  What  harsh  fate  did  he  see  awaiting  him  in  that  city? 

3.  How  soon  after  the  transfiguration  did  he  start  for  Jerusalem  ? 

4.  Which  route  did  he  take? 

5.  Who  were  the  Gentiles  who  should  crucify  him? 

6.  Why  would  the  priests  and  scribes  deliver  him  to  these  Gentiles? 

7.  Did  the  disciples  understand  what  he  meant  when  he  foretold  his 

death  ? 

8.  What  dispute  had  the  disciples  been  having? 

9.  How  did  Jesus  settle  this  dispute? 

10.  How  many  times  had  he  been  to  Jerusalem  before  ? 

11.  Were  there  many  people  in  Jerusalem  who  would  know  him? 

12.  At  what  time  of  the  year  did  he  plan  to  reach  the  city? 


XXVII.     The  Journey. 

Matthew  XIX.  13-22;   Mark  X.  13-31;   Luke  X\'III.  15-30. 

Of  course,  the  journey  had  to  be  made  all  the  way  on  foot. 
Sometimes  people  traveled  on  camel.s  or  donkey.s,  but  u.sually 
they  walked,  and  Jesus  and  his  friends  were  all  young  and 
vigorous,  so  that  the  prospect  of  the  long,  easy  tramp  was 
very  pleasant.     They  decided  to  go  a  rather  roundabout  way. 

The  shortest  way  would  be  to  cut  right  down  south  through 
the  country  of  Samaria,  stopping  three  or  four  times,  for  night, 
at  little  villages  along  the  way.  But  this  was  not  a  favorite 
way,  for  the  people  of  Samaria  were  very  bitter  enemies  to 
the  Jews,  and  would  not  treat  them  at  all  well.  Then  there 
was  the  caravan  route  which  they  could  follow,  running  down 
on  the  west  along  the  shore  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea.  But 
this  was  rather  too  long  a  way. 

Instead  they  decided  to  cross  the  Jordan  River  to  the  east 
bank,  and  travel  down  through  the  country  called  Perea. 
This  would  be  a  delightful  journey,  and  would  give  Jesus  an 
opportunity  for  visiting  many  towns  which  he  had  never  seen 
and  for  preaching  to  people  who  had  never  heard  him.  This, 
then,  was  the  route  they  took,  fording  the  Jordan  at  a  point 
just  south  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee. 

Many  pleasant  incidents  occurred  on  the  way.  The  people 
came  to  meet  him  everywhere  with  the  utmost  eagerness.  He 
preached  to  them,  and  healed  their  sick,  and  taught  them  his 
gospel  of  love  and  goodness.  Of  course,  all  this  delayed  the 
journey  considerably,  but  there  was  no  especial  haste.  It 
was  during  this  trip  that  Jesus  was  met  one  day  by  a  group 
of  women  bringing  their  children  for  him  to  talk  to  and  bless. 
We  can  imagine  him  resting  under  a  shady  tree  by  the  road- 
side, while  the  children  played  around  him  or  climbed  into 
his  arms. 

It  was  also  upon  this  trip  that  a  rich  young  man  came  to 
him,  very  anxious  to  know  how  he  could  get  into  heaven,  and 
declaring  that  he  had  obeyed  all  the  commandments.     And, 


54 

when  Jesus  told  him  to  go  and  sell  all  his  possessions  and  give 
the  money  to  the  poor,  he  shook  his  head  and  turned  sadly 
away.  He  did  not  want  to  belong  to  the  kingdom  of  heaven 
quite  enough  to  do  all  that.  So  the  time  went  by.  Each  day 
he  preached  to  some  new  hearers  or  told  his  disciples  some 
new  parable;  and  each  day  brought  him  nearer  and  nearer 
to  the  city  of  Jerusalem. 


1.  What  band  of  little  visitors  came  to  see  him  one  day? 

2.  How  were  they  received  by  the  disciples? 

3.  Why  did  the  disciples  treat  them  so  ? 

4.  How  did  Jesus  receive  them? 

5.  Do  you  think  Jesus  was  fond  of  little  children? 

6.  What  question  did  the  young  man  ask  him  ? 

7.  To  what  famous  passage  did  Jesus  refer  him? 

8.  What  did  Jesus  finally  tell  him  to  do  ? 

9.  Why  did  he  refuse  to  do  this? 

10.  Is  it  possible  for  a  camel  to  pass  through  a  needle's  eye  ? 

11.  Do  you  think  Jesus  was  prejudiced  against  rich  people? 

12.  What  did  he  consider  the  true  use  of  riches? 


XXVIII.     Dark  Forebodings. 
Matthew  XX.  17-19;  Lukf.  XVtll.  31-34. 

As  they  gradually  drew  nearer  the  city,  Jesus  could  not  help 
thinking  more  and  more  of  the  harsh  treatment,  perhaj)s  death 
even,  that  was  in  store  for  him.  We  must  understand  thai 
the  Jews  were  a  very  pious  people.  They  took  their  religion 
very  seriously,  and  considered  it  a  great  sin  for  any  one  to 
say  anything  against  God  or  the  Messiah  or  the  Bible.  Such 
sins  were  called  "  blasphemy,"  and  were  considered  crimes 
worthy  of  death. 

They  thought  it  about  as  sinful  for  a  common  man  to  claim 
that  he  was  the  Messiah  as  for  him  to  claim  that  he  was  God 
himself.  Such  a  man  would  be  looked  ujjon  as  a  base  impostor. 
He  would  be  guilty  of  the  worst  blasphemy,  because  he  set 
himself  up  to  be  the  holy  Messiah,  the  messenger  of  God  Most 
High.  Now  Jesus  honestly  believed  himself  to  be  that  Mes- 
siah, but  he  knew  he  could  not  make  the  proud  Pharisees 
and  Rabbis  beheve  it.  Hence  he  foresaw  how  that  they  would 
call  him  a  liar,  and  a  fraud  and  a  blasphemer,  and  would  want 
to  kill  him. 

In  olden  days  the  Jews  executed  their  criminals  by  stoning 
them  to  death  outside  the  city  wall.  But  now  the  country 
was  under  the  laws  of  Rome,  and  the  Roman  law  said  that 
a  criminal  must  be  executed  by  cruciiixion,  which  was,  if  any- 
thing, even  more  horrible  than  stoning.  So  this  is  what  Jesus 
feared.  He  knew  the  powerful,  influential  men  in  Jerusalem 
would  not  believe  him  when  he  said  he  was  the  Messiah.  He 
knew  they  would  charge  him  with  blasphemy,  and  have  a 
trial,  and  then  take  him  to  the  Roman  governor  and  demand 
that  he  be  executed.  And  there  was  no  reason  why  the  gov- 
ernor should  not  give  the  order  to  his  soldiers  to  take  him 
outside  the  city  and  crucify  him.  This  is  what  he  expected. 
These  were  his  dark  forebodings,  and  they  kept  growing 
darker,  the  nearer  he  approached  the  city. 

Sometimes  the  craving  for  sympathy  and  help  came  over 


56 

him  so  strongly  that  he  felt  he  must  talk  to  some  one  about 
his  fears  and  misgivings.  So  he  would  try  to  tell  his  disciples. 
But  they  could  never  understand,  and  simply  said,  Oh,  no, 
that  will  never  happen.  Thus  he  had  to  bear  his  anxiety 
all  alone.  What  a  wonder  it  is  that  he  did  not  give  it  all  up, 
and  go  back  to  his  quiet,  obscure,  safe  life  in  Galilee!  What 
a  noble  will  he  must  have  had  to  keep  so  steadily  on  in  his 
God-given  duty,  even  in  the  face  of  a  fearful  death! 


1.  What  dark  prophecy  did  Jesus  make  to  his  disciples  concerning  his 

own  fate  ? 

2.  Did  they  share  these  gloomy  ex[)ectations? 

3.  Wliat  do  you   think  were  their  own  expectations  as  to  their  master's 

fortune  ? 

4.  Why  was  Jesus  prompted  to  make  these  prophecies  to  them  ? 

5.  Why  did  he  wish  to  prepare  them  for  his  fate  ? 

6.  What  are  some  of  the  things  that  were  written  through  the  prophets, 

to  which  he  refers  in  the  Luke  version  ? 

7.  What  is  sympathy? 

8.  Do  you  think  the  disciples  were  sympathetic  to  Jesus? 

9.  What  was  it  that  prevented  their  understanding  his  prophecies? 

10.  Do  you  think  Jesus  was  happy  during  these  days? 

11.  Why  did  he  go  straight  ahead? 

12.  What  traits  of  character  are  most  prominent  in  Jesus  just  now? 


XXIX.    Jericho. 

Matthew  XX.  29-34;  Mark  X.  46-52;  Likk  XVIII.  35-43,  XIX.  i-io. 

Traveling  along  in  thi.s  easy  fashion,  Jesus  and  his  comj)any 
tinally  reached  the  city  of  Jericho,  very  near  Jerusalem.  This, 
you  remember,  was  the  first  city  that  Joshua  and  his  Israel- 
itish  army  conquered  when  they  entered  Canaan  hundreds  of 
years  before.  Ever  since  that  time  it  had  been  inhabited  l)y 
the  Jews,  and  had  ranked  as  one  of  their  largest  and  most 
important  cities. 

As  Jesus  entered  the  gates  and  passed  through  the  streets, 
two  little  incidents  happened  which  offered  him  precious 
encouragement.  A  poor  blind  man  named  Bartima^us  was 
seated  at  the  roadside,  begging  alms.  He  heard  the  soft  foot- 
falls of  sandals  in  the  dust,  and  cried  out  to  know  who  was 
passing  by.  Some  one  said,  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  At  once  the 
poor  fellow  shouted  out,  Jesus,  thou  son  of  David,  have  mercy 
on  me! 

They  told  him  roughly  to  keep  still,  but  he  shouted  the  louder, 
Jesus,  have  mercy  on  me,  until  Jesus  heard  and  stopped,  and 
asked  him  what  he  would  have.  Bartimaius  made  his  touch- 
ing request.  Lord,  I  ask  that  I  may  receive  my  sight.  Jesus 
granted  his  request  in  heartfelt  gratitude.  Here  was  a  blind 
beggar  who  believed  on  him  and  came  to  him  for  help,  and 
Jesus  secretly  thanked  him  for  even  his  poor  trust  and  confi- 
dence. 

As  he  walked  along,  with  the  people  crowding  around  him 
more  and  more,  he  happened  to  glance  up  into  a  fig-tree  that 
grew  at  the  side  of  the  street,  and  saw  the  figure  of  a  man 
perched  among  the  branches,  and  looking  eagerly  and  intently 
down  at  him.  It  was  a  man  named  Zacch.neus,  who,  being 
very  short,  had  found  it  impossible  to  get  a  glimpse  of  Jesus 
through  the  crowd,  and  so  had  run  on  ahead  and  climbed 
a  tree  in  order  to  get  a  good  look  at  him.  He  was  a  man  w^hom 
everybody  hated  and  despised,  because  he  was  a  tax-gatherer; 
but  Jesus  was  so  touched  by  his  eagerness  to  see  him  that  he 


5B 

struck  up  a  friendship  with  him,  and  called  him  to  his  side, 
and  spent  that  night  at  his  house. 

Here  was  another  man,  a  despised  and  misjudged  publican, 
who  yet  believed  on  Jesus,  and  was  proud  of  it.  What  an  en- 
couragement it  was  to  him  to  win  the  confidence  of  at  least 
a  blind  beggar  and  a  hated  tax-gatherer,  if  of  no  one  else! 
Jesus  went  about  his  work  strengthened  in  his  determination 
to  be  faithful  for  the  sake  of  the  poor  and  the  outcast,  like 
Bartimaeus  and  Zacchaeus,  if  not  for  the  benefit  of  the  strong 
and  the  well-to-do. 


1.  What  great  city  did  lie  visit  on  the  way  to  Jerusalem? 

2.  What  occupation  did  Zacchaeus  follow? 

3.  Why  could  not  Zacchsus  see  Jesus? 

4.  How  did  he  manage  to  get  a  glimpse  of  him  ? 

5.  \Vhy  did  the  people  murmur  when  Jesus  proposed  to  stay  at  Zacch^us' 

house  ? 

6.  What  does  Bartimaeus  mean? 

7.  What  was  the  matter  with  Bartimaeus? 

8.  How  did  he  know  that  Jesus  was  going  by  ? 

9.  How  did  he  reply  when  they  told  him  to  keep  still? 

10.  Did  Jesus  resent  being  interrupted  by  a  blind  beggar? 

11.  Of  what  Old  Testament  incident  does  this  remind  you? 

12.  How  far  was  Jerusalem  from  Jericho? 


XXX.     A  Cry  of  Discouragement. 
Matthew  XXIII.  37-39;   Luke  XIX.  41-44. 

It  is  not  likely  that  they  stayed  lon^  in  Jcric  ho.  They  were 
in  a  hurry  to  get  to  Jeru.salem,  all  the  more  so  as  it  was  getting 
near  the  time  for  the  great  annual  I'asso\er  Feast,  which  the 
Jews  observed  with  impressive  religious  ceremonies  and  many 
family  gatherings.  So  probably  the  ne.xt  day  they  set  out 
from  Jericho,  up  the  steep,  wild  glen  road,  where  there  was 
great  danger  of  being  attacked  by  robbers  and  even  savage 
beasts,  towards  the  capital  city. 

They  stopped  over  night  in  Bethany,  at  the  house  of  Mary 
and  Martha,  and  then  the  following  morning  quite  a  little 
company,  including  Jesus  and  his  disciples  and  perhaps  twenty 
or  thirty  friends  who  attached  themselves  to  him,  started  out 
to  walk  the  remaining  five  or  si.\  miles,  and  enter  the  city. 
Their  road  wound  easily  over  a  low  mountain  range,  uj)  grad- 
ually to  the  summit  and  down  on  the  other  side,  into  the 
little  valley  in  the  center  of  which  stood  Jerusalem. 

We  can  well  imagine  how  ner\ous  Jesus  grew  as  they 
trudged  along  this  road  and  kept  getting  nearer  to  the  top  of 
the  mountain.  His  heart  began  to  beat  painfully,  for  he 
felt  that  the  most  important  moment  of  his  life  was  coming. 
Here  they  were  at  last  almost  within  sight  of  Jerusalem,  where 
he  must  proclaim  himself  the  Jewish  Messiah,  and  must 
invite  all  who  believed  him  to  join  with  him  in  starting  a  king- 
dom of  righteousness,  and  where  in  all  probability  he  would 
be  arrested  by  the  powerful  men,  and  tried  for  blasphemy, 
and  mocked,  and  killed. 

All  these  thoughts  went  through  his  mind  as  he  toiled  up 
the  hill.  And,  when  at  last  they  reached  the  summit  of  the 
hill  and  could  look  down  on  the  other  side,  there  lay  the  great, 
compact  city  before  them,  with  its  gray  wall  and  its  red-tiled 
roofs,  with  its  domes  and  towers  and  gorgeous  temple  glis- 
tening with  marble  and  gold  in  the  sun.  It  was  such  a  beauti- 
ful sight,  and  it  came  so  suddenly,  that  Jesus  was  completely 


6o 

overcome.  He  seemed  to  feel  all  at  once  the  utter  hopeless- 
ness of  his  work.  Could  he  ever  win  this  great  proud  city 
to  his  humble  gospel?  Was  he  not  foredoomed  to  failure? 
Yet  he  must  carry  out  his  efforts. 

The  sight  gave  him  a  bitter  foretaste  of  disappointment, 
and  it  was  so  hard  to  bear  that,  as  he  gazed  at  the  great  city 
lying  there  in  the  sun,  so  proud  and  self-satisfied,  he  could 
not  restrain  the  tears,  because  he  knew  how  obstinate  it  was 
going  to  be,  how  it  was  going  to  turn  away  from  his  message, 
which  would  have  secured  it  strength  and  security  and  peace. 
It  is  no  wonder  that  he  wept  at  the  sight  and  thought.  The 
wonder  is  that  in  spite  of  the  discouragement  he  kept  on. 


1.  What  village  did  Jesus  stop  at  on  his  way  to  Jerusalem? 

2.  What  people  did  he  know  in  this  village? 

3.  What  natural  feature  of  the  landscape  lay.  between  this  village  and 

Jerusalem  ? 

4.  At  what  point  in  the  road  might  the  traveler  get  his  first  view  of  the 

city? 

5.  How  did  this  first  sight  affect  Jesus? 

6.  Of  what  other  incident  in  his  life  might  he  have  been  thinking? 

7.  Was  his  prophecy  ever  fulfilled  ? 

8.  Could  Jesus  have  really  averted  the  ruin  of  the  city  ? 

9.  As  he  wept  over  the  city,  was  he  thinking  of  himself  or  of  them  ? 

10.  How  many  people  were  with  Jesus  ? 

11.  What  great  event  was  about  to  begin  in  the  city? 

12.  Why  did  he  come  to  Jerusalem  at  jast  this  time? 


XXXI.     Fulfilling  the  Prophecy. 

Matthew  XXI.  i-ii;   Mark  XI.  i  lo;  Llkl  XIX.  29-40. 

In  the  Old  Testament  book  of  Zechariah  tlicro  i.s  a  proph- 
ecy wliich  (k'c  laivs  ilial,  when  the  Me.s.siah  .should  come  into 
Jerusalem,  people  might  know  him  becau.se  he  would  be  a 
lowly,  humble  mm,  and  would  be  riding  ui)on  a  little  a.ss's 
coll.  It  was  not  a  \ery  defmite  prophecy,  because  there  were 
a  great  many  lowly,  humble  men  wdio  continually  rode  into 
Jerusalem  u])on  asses  or  uj^on  colts.  That  was  one  of  the 
commonest  methods  of  traveling  at  liie  time.  So  people  did 
not  pay  much  attention  to  the  ])rophecy.  Besides,  they  did 
not  expect  a  lowly,  humble  Messiah:  they  looked  for  a  glorious, 
powerful  king. 

But  Jesus  was  very  familiar  with  this  Old  Testament 
prophecy,  as  he  w\as  with  all  the  sacred  writings,  and  was 
determined,  when  he  entered  Jerusalem,  to  do  it  in  the  way 
the  pro]>hccy  described,  riding  upon  a  little  colt.  It  would 
perhaps  be  a  tacit  way  of  proclaiming  hinxsclf  the  man  of 
whom  the  prophecy  was  written.  So,  when  they  started  on  for 
the  city,  he  sent  two  disciples  ahead  to  the  village  of  Beth 
phage,  half-way  down  the  mountain,  with  instructions  lo  fmd 
a  colt  there  and  ha\'e  him  ready. 

Sure  enough,  when  he  and  the  rest  of  his  frienrls  came  to 
Bcthjjhage,  there  w-ere  the  two  di.sciplcs  holding  a  sturdy  little 
colt,  upon  which  they  had  laid  their  mantles  to  make  a  sort 
of  saddle.  Jesus  got  upon  the  strong  little  beast,  and  went 
on  his  way,  while  all  his  friends  walked  eagerly  along  beside 
him,  singing  and  talking  in  a  very  e.xcited  manner.  They  soon 
met  another  company  of  friends,  who  had  heard  that  Jesus 
was  coming,  and  had  set  out  from  the  city  to  meet  him.  These 
new-comers  joined  the  throng,  so  that  it  numbered  perhaps 
as  many  as  a  hundred  men,  women,  and  children,  and  tliey 
all  swept  joyously  along  the  road,  with  Jesus  riding  ahead, 
into  the  city. 

In  order  to  show  their  joy  at  his  coming  and  in  order   to 


62 

let  every  one  know  that  this  humble  man  was  their  Messiah, 
they  cut  down  palm  branches  and  strewed  them,  with  flowers 
and  leaves  and  even  their  own  garments,  upon  the  dusty  road, 
so  that  his  colt  might  walk  upon  them.  And  they  themselves 
waved  their  palms,  and  shouted,  "Hosanna!  blessed  is  he  that 
cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord!"  And  the  children  sang  and 
danced  about  him,  and  in  this  simple,  joyous  fashion  Jesus 
fulfilled  the  prophecy,  and  entered  the  great  city  of  his  fathers 
as  the  Messiah,  sent  to  deliver  his  people  from  sin. 


1.  Where  is  the  village  of  Bethphage? 

2.  On  what  errand  did  Jesus  send  two  disciples  into  this  village? 

3.  How  were  they  to  answer,  if  anybody  objected  ? 

4.  How  did  they  prepare  these  animals  for  him  to  ride  upon  ? 

5.  How  did  they  show  their  joy? 

6.  What  does  Hosanna  mean? 

7.  From  what  Old  Testament  prophecy  did  Jesus  model  this  action  ? 

8.  What  inference  did  he  wish  people  to  draw  from  this  action  ? 

9.  Did  he  create  much  of  a  sensation  ? 

10.  What  did  the  Pharisees  say  to  him? 

11.  How  did  Jesus  reply? 

12.  What  name  is  given  to  the  Sunday  which  commemorates  this  event? 


XXXII.     A  Busy  Week. 

Matthew  XXI    12-17,  23-32;   AIakk  XI.  11,  15   10;   Iaki;  XIX.  ^5-48. 

Jerusalem  was  so  crowded  that  Jesus  and  his  friends  could 
find  no  place  to  kulge.  So  he  decided  to  li\  e  in  Bethany,  and 
come  to  the  city  ever>  morning  to  do  his  work.  After  his 
triumphal  entry  he  went  straight  to  the  beautiful  temple  on 
Mt.  Zion.  This  was  the  place  where  men  worshiped  God, 
and  Jesus,  as  the  Messiah  of  God,  felt  that  he  had  charge  of 
His  temple  and  religion.  So  he  went  there  at  once,  as  to  his 
headquarters. 

When  he  reached  it,  he  saw  a  sight  that  filled  him  with  anger. 
The  temple  was  surrounded  by  broad  marble  porticoes  or 
courts.  People  were  continually  passing  through  these  courts 
to  make  a  short  cut,  or  were  resting  and  sleeping  in  the  cool 
shade;  and  some  were  even  selling  doves  and  incense  and 
other  small  wares  among  the  columns.  They  had  no  more 
idea  of  the  sacredness  of  the  place  than  to  turn  it  into  a  loung- 
ing place  and  a  general  bazaar. 

It  made  Jesus  just  as  indignant  at  it  would  make  us  to  see 
a  man  selling  lemonade  from  the  steps  of  our  church.  He 
got  a  scourge  of  small  knotted  cords,  and  with  flashing  eyes 
drove  these  loungers  and  venders  out  of  the  courts,  reminding 
them  that  the  house  of  God  was  a  house  of  prayer,  not  a  den 
of  thieves  and  robbers.  This  action  of  his  e.xcited  the  hos- 
tility of  the  Priests  and  Rabbis,  who  resented  such  an  implica- 
tion of  proprietorship  and  authority  from  a  humble  peasant. 
They  asked  him  "  by  what  authority  "  he  did  these  things, 
and  they  set  themselves  to  work  in  the  craftiest  ways  to  entrap 
Jesus  into  saying  something  blasphemous  or  treasonous,  so 
that  they  might  ruin  him. 

They  knew  that,  if  they  could  catch  him  saying  anything 
disparaging  to  their  religion  or  their  law,  the  people  would 
turn  from  him  as  from  a  leper;  and,  if  only  they  might  catch 
him  saying  something  against  Rome,  it  would  be  a  simple 
matter  to  have  him  arrested  by  the  Roman  ol^cers  for  treason. 


64 

So  hardly  a  day  went  by  but  what  some  group  of  cunning 
old  Jews  approached  him  with  bland  words  and  fair  exterior, 
to  put  their  embarrassing  questions  to  him. 

In  the  incident  of  the  tribute  money,  and  the  woman  taken 
in  sin,  and  in  the  question  regarding  the  great  commandment, 
and  concerning  marriage  in  heaven,  we  have  a  few  samples 
of  the  wiles  and  plots  by  means  of  which  they  attempted  to 
ensnare  Jesus.  Jesus,  on  the  other  hand,  foils  every  plot  and 
parries  every  thrust  with  such  quick  insight  and  ready  tact 
that  we  listen  to  his  retorts  in  wonder  and  delight.  In  this 
way  a  busy  week  went  by.  His  days  were  spent  in  the  city, 
in  the  temple,  on  the  streets,  preaching  and  talking  to  the 
people  who  heard  him  gladly.  His  nights  were  spent  peace- 
fully with  his  loving  friends  in  Bethany. 


1.  Where  did  Jesus  go  first  after  entering  Jerusalem? 

2.  What  did  he  see  there  that  made  him  very  angry? 

3.  Why  did  these  people  gather  in  just  that  place? 

4.  What  did  Jesus  do  to  them  ? 

5.  How  did  the  Pharisees  feel  when  they  saw  this  action? 

6.  What  embarrassing  question  did  the  Pharisees  ask  him? 

7.  Suppose  Jesus  had  answered  their  question,  what  charge  would  they 

have  brought  against  him? 

8.  What  embarrassing  question  did  he  ask  them  in  turn  ? 

9.  Why  did  they  not  dare  to  answer  this  question? 

10.  Why  were  the  Pharisees  so  anxious  to  destroy  him? 

11.  To  whom  did  the  two  sons  in  the  parable  correspond? 

12.  Where  did  Jesus  spend  his  nights? 


XXXIII.     The  Last   Meal  Together. 

Matthew  XXV'I.  1-5,  14-30;  Mark  XI\'.  1-2,  10-26;  Luki:  XXII.  r-23. 

As  the  days  went  by,  Jesus  could  not  help  seeing  that  the 
feeling  of  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  was  growing  more  and 
more  hostile  towards  him.  The  tone  of  sarcasm  and  mockery 
with  which  they  had  at  first  met  him  had  grown  into  dccj) 
and  genuine  hatred.  Rumors  came  to  his  ears  of  plans  and 
conspiracies  to  entrap  him,  and  in  a  dozen  dilTerent  ways  he 
was  led  to  see  that  the  end  was  near,  and  that  the  bitter  feel- 
ing of  his  enemies  must  soon  break  out  into  violent  action. 
This  he  had  more  than  half  expected  all  along,  but  the  present 
reality  was  none  the  less  terrifying  in  spite  of  his  being  fore- 
warned. 

As  the  great  Passover  Week  drew  to  its  close,  something 
seemed  to  tell  Jesus  that  he  had  not  much  longer  to  li\  e.  On 
Thursday  night  it  was  the  custom  for  all  good  Jews  to  sat 
their  annual  Passover  Supper.  Jesus  felt  that  this  supper 
would  be  the  last  meal  he  and  his  disciples  would  ever  eat 
together.  Events  proved  that  his  feeling  was  only  too  true. 
He  decided  to  make  it  a  sort  of  a  farewell  occasion  to  his  friends. 
This  Passover  Supper,  which  came  on  the  fourteenth  day  of 
the  month  Nisan,  was  the  central  feature  of  the  whole  cele- 
bration, and  was  not  so  unlike  our  Thanksgi\ing  dinner. 

On  that  evening  the  people  all  gathered  by  families  or  by 
parties  of  eight  or  ten,  each  in  a  separate  room,  and  there  they 
ate  this  sacred  meal.  They  always  had  bitter  herbs  and  un- 
leavened bread  and  a  lamb,  just  as  we  always  have  turkey 
and  cranberry  sauce  for  Thanksgiving.  The  custom  was  that 
they  must  eat  everything  up.  Jesus  and  his  friends  had  their 
supper  together  in  an  upper  chamber  which  some  one  lent 
them.  It  was  a  solemn  company,  for  Jesus  felt  that  it  was 
the  last  he  should  see  of  them.  He  knew  that  his  enemies 
were  only  waiting  for  an  excuse  to  arrest  him,  so  as  to  convict 
him  of  blasphemy  and  condemn  him  to  death.     He  also  knew 


66 

from  certain  suspicious  actions  that  one  of  his  own  disciples, 
Judas,  was  planning  to  help  the  Pharisees  to  arrest  him. 

We  cannot  believe  Judas  was  treacherous  in  his  design. 
He  was  rather  working  from  the  notion  that  by  placing  his 
master  in  mortal  peril  he  should  force  him  to  call  upon  divine 
aid,  and  thus  prove  conclusively,  in  the  eyes  of  the  whole 
nation,  that  he  was  the  divine  Messiah.  Jesus  must  have 
suspected  his  purpose,  for,  while  they  were  sitting  at  the  table, 
he  said,  with  a  suddenness  that  was  startling,  "One  of  you 
shall  betray  me." 

The  words  cast  a  gloom  on  the  company.  They  realized 
for  the  first  time  that  Jesus  was  in  desperate  danger,  and  that 
this  very  meal  might  be  their  last  farewell  to  him.  The  supper 
ended  in  sadness.  They  sang  a  hymn  together,  and  then  went 
out  into  the  cool  night,  to  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane. 


1.  Why  were  the  Pharisees  unwilling  to  take  Jesus  during  the  feast? 

2.  Which  one  of  the  twelve  disciples  proposed  to  betray  him  to  them  ? 

3.  How  did  Jesus  tell  his  disciples  to  find  the  chamber  where  they  might 

eat  their  Passover  Feast? 

4.  Wliat  did  they  have  to  do  to  make  ready  the  Passover?    , 

5.  What  did  they  have  to  eat  at  this  meal  ? 

6.  On  what  day  of  the  week  was  it  eaten  ? 

7.  At  what  time  of  day? 

8.  \¥hat  startling  thing  did  Jesus  tell  them  as  they  were  eating? 

9.  How  did  they  answer? 

10.  How  did  he  say  good-bye  to  them  ? 

11.  In  what  way  does  the  Christian  Church  commemorate  this  meal? 

12.  Where  did  they  go  after  the  meal  was  finished? 


XXXIV.     The  Darkest  Hour. 

Matthew  XXVI.  36-56;  Mark  XIV.  32-50. 

As  Jesus  and  his  disciples  left  the  room  where  they  had 
eaten  their  Passover  Supper,  Judas  was  missinjj;.  lie  had 
gone  to  meet  the  officers  of  the  High  i'ricst  and  lead  them  to 
Jesus.  It  became  at  once  evident  to  Jesus  that  the  time  had 
come  for  him  to  face  his  enemies,  and  to  sulTer  at  their  hands 
whatever  torment  they  might  see  fit  to  inflict. 

It  was  very  natural  that  this  prospect  should  arouse  in  him 
a  perfect  agony  of  dread.  Even  the  coolest  and  most  valiant 
heart  must  tremble  a  little  in  the  presence  of  an  awful  death. 
Jesus  was  a  peaceful  man.  He  did  not  have  the  hardened 
nerves  of  a  soldier.  He  had  lived  a  gentle,  quiet  life,  and  the 
thought  of  being  arrested  and  brutally  handled  and  killed 
filled  him  almost  with  panic. 

All  his  strong  love  of  life  and  peace  and  comfort  came  to 
the  surface,  and  urged  him  to  escape  while  yet  there  was  time. 
There  might  still  be  an  hour  or  so  before  Judas  reached  the 
garden  with  the  officers.  Why  should  he  not  quietly  slip  otT 
to  Bethany  or  disappear  among  the  wild  ravines  of  the  wil- 
derness? He  could  wait  there  until  the  trouble  blew  over. 
People  would  soon  forget,  and  then  he  would  be  safe  again. 
Life  was  just  as  sweet  to  him  as  it  is  to  us,  and  his  fear  of 
physical  pain  was  just  as  keen  as  ours.  So  this  instinct  to 
save  himself  came  uppermost. 

But  there  was  another  instinct  in  his  noble  mind  that  was 
just  as  strong,  and  even  stronger.  It  was  the  instinct  of  fidelity 
to  his  ideal,  of  obedience  to  his  sense  of  duty.  God  wanted 
him  to  be  his  Christ.  If  God  chose  to  have  his  Christ  suffer 
and  die,  it  was  his  duty  to  suffer  and  die.  It  was  a  hard  battle 
that  was  fought  there  in  the  darkness  of  Gethsemane,  the 
eternal  battle  between  selfish  inclination  and  the  sense  of  duty. 

We  do  not  think  any  the  less  of  Jesus  for  passing  through 
the  terror  and  weakness  of  that  last  dark  hour.  It  just  shows 
how  much  it  cost  him  to  keep  himself  true  to  God's  will.     If 


68 

the  struggle  had  been  easier,  the  victory  would  not  have  been 
so  glorious.  As  he  kneels  there  beside  a  huge  stone  in  the 
garden,  praying  to  God,  "O  my  Father,  if  it  be  possible,  let 
this  cup  pass  from  me:  nevertheless  not  as  I  will,  but  as  Thou 
wilt,"  he  shows  us  how  noble  and  true  in  spite  of  all  human 
weaknesses  a  man  can  be. 

So  he  overcame  his  last  weakness  and  hushed  his  last  fear, 
and  gave  himself  once  more,  and  for  the  last  time,  completely 
over  to  the  service  of  God.  The  next  moment,  when  Judas 
appeared  with  a  band  of  soldiers  and  pointed  out  Jesus  by 
kissing  him,  he  went  quietly  with  them,  in  perfect  calmness 
and  serenity. 


1.  Who  were  the  two  sons  of  Zebedee  ? 

2.  Why  did  he  begin  to  be  exceeding  sorrowful? 

3.  What  prayer  did  he  make  to  his  Heavenly  Father  in  the  garden  ? 

4.  What  were  the  disciples  doing  when  he  carne  back  to  them  ? 

5.  Of  whom  was  he  speaking  when  he  said,  "The  spirit  is  willing,  but  the 

flesh  is  weak"? 

6.  How  many  times  did  he  go  into  the  garden  to  pray  ? 

7.  Who  did  Judas  bring  with  him  to  arrest  Christ  ? 

8.  How  did  Judas  identify  Christ  ? 

9.  Which  one  of  the  disciples  began  to  offer  resistance  ? 

10.  What  did  the  disciples  do  when  he  was  arrested  ? 

11.  What  did  Jesus  mean  when  he  prayed,  "Let  this  cup  pass  from  me''? 

12.  What  day  of  the  week  was  this? 


XXXV.     The   End. 

Matthew  XXVI.  57-68,  XXVII.  1-2,  11-61. 

Jesus  was  arrested  at  about  ten  o'clock,  j)crhaj).s,  on  a  Thurs- 
day night.  The  disciples  all  lied  a„s  .soon  as  the  soldiers  ap- 
peared, fearing  lest  they  also  be  arrested  with  him.  He  was 
taken  at  once  to  the  house  of  the  High  Priest,  Caiajihas,  and 
was  put  uj)  for  trial.  By  his  own  admission  he  was  con\  icted 
of  calling  himself  the  Messiah,  and  was  found  guilty  of  blas- 
phemy. The  next  thing  was  to  get  him  condemned  to  death, 
and,  to  do  this,  it  was  necessary  to  apply  to  the  Roman  gov- 
ernor, Pontius  Pilate. 

Very  early  in  the  morning  Jesus  was  taken,  having  first 
been  scourged  and  mocked  in  the  house  of  Caiaphas,  through 
the  narrow  streets  to  the  fortress  where  the  governor  lived. 
Pilate  was  not  at  all  a  bad  man.  He  had  a  keen  sense  of  jus- 
tice, and  he  was  entirely  unprejudiced.  When  he  cross-ex- 
amined Jesus,  he  found  no  fault  whatever  in  him  except  that 
he  claimed  to  be  the  Messiah  of  the  Jews.  This  did  not  strike 
Pilate  as  being  such  a  great  offense;  the  man  might  have  been 
a  mild  lunatic  at  the  most,  but  hardly  deserving  of  death. 

So  Pilate,  thinking  to  release  him,  went  out  on  the  portico  that 
looked  down  into  the  street,  and  spoke  to  the  crowd.  He  said, 
I  find  no  guilt  in  this  man.  I  see  no  cause  for  killing  him.  I 
will  give  orders  that  he  be  whipped,  and  then  I  will  release 
him.  But  the  people  shouted  angrily  back:  Crucify  him! 
Crucify  him!  Still  Pilate  stuck  to  his  intention.  He  had 
Jesus  whipped,  and  a  crown  of  thorny  brambles  forced  upon 
his  head,  and  in  that  pitiable  condition  Pilate  led  him  out  on 
the  portico,  and  showed  him  to  the  people,  and  said :  See,  here 
is  the  man.  I  have  had  him  scourged  and  crowned  v^th 
thorns.  Is  not  that  punishment  enough?  See  how  he  has 
suffered!  Will  you  not  let  me  release  him  now?  But  the 
people  shouted  still  more  furiously:  Crucify  him!  Crucify 
him! 

And  'some  of  the  influential  men  warned  Pilate  that,  if  he 


70 

did  not  crucify  him,  it  would  stir  up  a  sedition,  and  the  Roman 
emperor  might  think  him  incapable  of  handling  the  province. 
So  at  last,  to  save  his  own  position,  Pilate  washed  his  hands 
of  the  whole  affair,  and  said :  Oh,  very  well,  do  as  you  please 
with  him.  His  blood  is  not  on  my  hands.  The  soldiers  made 
a  great  rough  cross  from  beams  of  wood,  and  the  whole  crowd 
poured  out  of  the  city  to  the  place  of  execution,  called  Gol- 
gotha. 

There  they  nailed  their  victim  upon  the  cross,  and  fixed 
it  upright  by  planting  the  end  in  the  ground.  There  Jesus 
hung  for  a  time,  until  his  weak  and  outworn  body  could  endure 
the  pain  no  longer.  Then  with  a  despairing  cry  to  God,  who 
appeared  to  have  utterly  forgotten  him,  he  died.  Loving 
friends  came  and  took  the  shattered  body  down,  and  laid  it 
tenderly  in  a  grave.     No  man  can  tell  where  that  grave  is. 


1.  Where  was  Jesus  first  taken? 

2.  Which  of  the  disciples  stealthily  followed  Jesus? 

3.  What  accusation  did  they  find  against  Jesus? 

4.  Where  did  they  take  him  the  first  thing  in  the  morning? 

5.  Why  was  this  necessary? 

6.  In  what  ways  did  Pilate  endeavor  to  save  his  life  ? 

7.  Why  did  Pilate  finally  consent  to  his  death  ? 

8.  In  what  cruel  way  did  they  mock  him? 

9.  Who  did  they  get  to  help  him  carry  out  his  cross? 
ID.  How  long  did  Jesus  live? 

11.  What  were  his  last  words? 

12.  Who  buried  him,  and  why  was  he  buried  so  quickly? 


XXXVI.     Conclusion. 

With  the  last  tragic  scene  the  story  of  Jesus'  life  comes  to  a 
triumphant  and  heroic  close.  If  we  could  go  on  with  the 
story  of  the  discijjlcs  and  the  early  Christian  Church,  we  would 
see  how  great  was  the  intluence  of  Jesus'  life  upon  men.  As 
we  look  back  through  the  lessons  we  have  studied,  there  stands 
out  prominently  and  clearly  a  life  faithful  to  the  duty  it  felt 
laid  upon  itself. 

Jesus'  duty  was  a  very  high  and  beautiful  one.  It  was  his 
strength,  as  he  himself  testified:  My  meat  is  to  do  the  will  of 
God.  He  felt  that  God  had  sent  him  to  do  and  to  say  certain 
things,  and,  whatever  else  might  happen  to  him,  he  must  do 
and  say  those  things.  It  was  not  always,  as  we  have  seen, 
the  easiest  and  safest  way  for  him  personally,  but  it  was  the 
only  way  his  strong  and  steadfast  soul  could  take,  because  it 
was  the  duty  which  the  will  of  his  Father  had  laid  upon 
him. 

This  duty  was  not  like  a  hard  task  that  he  did  because  he 
was  forced  to  do  it,  but  was  done  willingly  and  gladly,  because 
he  loved  and  wanted  to  help  his  people.  And  so,  when  his 
duty  grew  into  the  thought  that  he  was  the  Messiah,  he  under- 
took that  work  as  the  will  of  God,  and  in  love  and  helpfulness 
to  men,  though  it  was  full  of  dangers  for  him.  This  faithful 
and  loving  obedience  to  duty  is  what  our  lessons  have  ])rin- 
cipally  taught  us. 

We  may  ask.  Was  Jesus  the  Messiah  ?  If  we  think  of  the 
Messiah  as  the  Jews  did,  as  a  prince  and  warrior  who  was  to 
conquer  their  enemies  and  rule  gloriously,  then  Jesus  was  not 
the  Messiah.  Because  he  did  none  of  these  things,  because 
he  did  not  try  to  do  so  or  teach  so,  the  Jews  would  not  accept 
him.  So  Jesus  was  not  the  Messiah  according  to  Jewish 
belief.  He  had  a  different  idea  of  the  Messiah.  He  believed 
in  the  Messiah  of  righteousness,  who  came  to  set  up  the  king- 
dom of  righteousness  in  the  lives  of  men.  So,  as  the  Messiah, 
he  tried  to  make  his  people  see  that  the  kingdom  of  God  was 


72 

to  be  established  by  their  being  good,  just,  merciful,  pure, 
and  true. 

Though  he  was  unsuccessful  in  leading  them  to  take  his 
view,  nevertheless,  since  his  death,  men  have  seen  that  the 
kingdom  of  God  can  be  brought  into  the  world  only  in  that 
way,  and  are  trying  all  the  time  to  do  so.  If  we  take  Jesus' 
view  of  the  Messiah,  as  one  who  in  God's  good  time  was  sent 
by  Him  to  show  what  His  kingdom  is,  and  to  lead  men  to  it, 
then  we  may  call  Jesus  the  Messiah. 

We  have  now  come  to  the  end  of  our  lessons,  and  have 
seen  how  noble,  brave,  and  unselfish  a  man  can  be.  And  we 
have  in  our  hearts,  always,  the  companionship  of  this  strong, 
faithful  Jesus  of  Nazareth  to  help  us,  and  teach  us  how  to 
become  so. 


1.  What  do  you  consider  the  most  prominent  trait  in  Christ's  character? 

2.  Do  you  think  he  was  on  the  whole  a  happy  man,  or  was  he,  as  he 

has  been  called,  a  "man  of  sorrows"? 

3.  What  new  thing  did  he  teach  the  world  about  God  ? 

4.  Of  what  tender  bond  with  God  was  he  supremely  conscious  ? 

5.  Does  he  anywhere  claim  that  he  is  the  only  man  who  enjoys  this  bond 

with  God? 

6.  In  what  relationship  with  each  other  does  he  teach  men  to  live  ? 

7.  Do  you  think  he  was  right  in  claiming  that  he  was  the  Christ  of  God  ? 

8.  Have  the  Jews  ever  agreed  that  his  claim  was  a  correct  one  ? 

9.  How  old  might  he  have  been  when  he  died  ? 

10.  What  beautiful  legend  arose  concerning  him  after  his  crucifixion  ? 

11.  In  what  way  does  this  legend  represent  the  truth? 

12.  What  Sunday  in  the  year  commemorates  this  event? 


